Thank You, Alice
by twilightfan4life92
Summary: Alice wants to fix up her best friend, Bella, and her brother Edward. How will she do it? By giving Bella the keys to Edward's apartment and telling her to move in! Will true love spark, or will Alice's plan blow up in her face? AH, CC. M for Language
1. Chapter One: New Roommate

_Author's Note: As some of you may know, I have decided that since I'm going to have a lot of free time this summer, I have decided to have two stories up at once. I had a poll up for two weeks for my readers to vote on which one of the four stories I have in the process of writing. Out of the four, _The Storm _and this story were tied at the end of the two weeks, so I made an author's decision and decided that I shall post this one first, before another poll is created for any story I may start in the future. However, this doesn't mean I won't forget about _Angel Of Death. _I will be able to update both stories at the same time…I hope. _

_Anyway, I hope you like this story…I actually really love where this is going and I think it's going to be really good. :)_

_Disclaimer: I own nothing of Twilight….Darn_

* * *

**Edward's Point Of View**

I sat at my parents' dining room table, talking quietly to my mother, Esme, about my roommate problems.

My old roommate was Jasper Hale, but he moved in with my sister about a week ago. He loved her so much; I knew it was only a matter of time before they were married. But now I was alone in my big apartment.

Not that I didn't mind being alone. It was just too…quiet sometimes. I needed to find _someone _to live with and soon, otherwise I might lose my mind. Sure, I had put an ad in the newspaper and people had responded. Yet, most of them were girls with no brains whatsoever. I defiantly _didn't _want to live with someone like that.

I heard a car door slam and watched as my sister, Alice, came bouncing into the room with a grin plastered on her face. Jasper, on the other hand, was trailing behind her shaking his head. Not a good sign.

"Edward!" Alice called brightly as she approached me, "guesswhat, guesswhat, guesswhat," she rushed, merging her words together. I groaned at her excitement.

"What?" I asked, a little hesitant.

"I _said_ guess," she pouted.

"They're closing all the malls in the world forever," I guessed, knowing it would upset her. It did. She gasped in horror.

"Don't even joke about something like that, Edward," she scolded before grinning again, "Anyway," she continued, "I found you an _amazing _new roommate," she said proudly. Jasper sat down at the table across from me.

"I tried to talk her out of it…" he defended quietly.

"Oh, hush," she hit him playfully. "Edward I know you're going to absolutely _love _her." She grinned. I groaned because I knew she meant that literally. I looked up at her, I knew she was excited about this and she was just trying to be a helpful sister, I decided it wouldn't hurt to at least _meet _the girl.

"Alright, Alice, just to make you happy," I began, "When do I meet this girl?" The grin left her face and she immediately began fidgeting with the hem of her skirt.

Oh shit…

"Well…ya see…I already gave her Jasper's old key and she had a friend of hers help her move in…" I stood up quickly and reached for my car keys.

"What the fuck, Alice!" I yelled. I didn't want someone I didn't know living in my apartment.

"Edward, don't worry. I know for a fact she's not there destroying the place or anything. Bella wouldn't do that." As if that was supposed to make me feel any better.

"It doesn't...Ugh…" I was halfway to the door now, "I don't…shit…Alice, we're not done with this conversation!" I hollered before slamming the door behind me. "Stupid Alice, always trying to play matchmaker." I muttered to myself as I unlocked the front door to my apartment. I walked in hesitantly, calling out to see if anyone was there, but I didn't get an answer. I took slow, careful steps as I made my living room where, on the couch, was one of the most beautiful woman I had ever seen.

She was sprawled out on the couch, asleep. Her face was heart shaped and pale, with high cheekbones and pink, full lips. Her long brown hair was spread out around her and her lips formed a small smile. Her small hands covered an old tattered book and, as I got closer, I saw that it was _Wuthering Heights. _A fan of the classics?

"Bella?" I asked quietly, remembering the name Alice had used. I knelt down beside the couch and shook her lightly, watching her stir. "Bella?" I asked again, a little louder this time. She scrunched her nose and then her eyelids fluttered open, revealing two big brown eyes. I stood up as she pushed the blanket off of her and set her book down beside her. She blinked and looked around before her eyes met mine.

"Hello," she whispered, looking at me cautiously, as if I would flip out on her any second. Of course, she was probably aware of what Alice had done and was probably waiting for me to kick her out. I smiled at her and she seemed to relax a bit. "Are you my Alice's brother?" I nodded.

"Edward Cullen," I introduced myself, holding out my hand to her.

"Bella Swan," she smiled, shaking my hand. There was a bit of silence before I realized how hungry I was. I looked down at my watch to see it was 6:00. I smiled a little and looked back at her.

"Are you hungry?" I asked. She raised an eyebrow but nodded anyway. "Well, I believe it's dinner time and I was wondering, since we're going to be living together now and everything, would you like to go out to dinner with me? Since all I know about you is your name." She smiled.

"I would love to." She said, standing up and walking towards the kitchen. I assumed that she would have change and stuff if we were going to go out to dinner, so I sat down on the couch and turned on the news before she walked back into the room, with her shoes on and her purse hanging on her shoulder. "Aren't we leaving?" she asked. I stood up quickly and turned the TV off.

"Yes, of course. I just thought you would take an hour to change your clothes and stuff before we could leave." I explained, instantly kicking myself for assuming. Thankfully, she laughed as we exited the apartment and I locked the door behind us.

"I'm not like Alice." She said with a reassuring smile.

"That's a relief," I said, "I mean I love my sister and all but sometimes she can be a little…" I trailed off, trying to think of a word to describe her.

"Controlling? Straight forward?" Bella offered. I nodded. "I know what you mean. She has this obsession with playing Bella Barbie with me?" I raised an eyebrow and she sighed. "She likes to dress me up in these ridiculous outfits that I would _never _wear and then does my hair and make-up. I have to sit there for _hours _most of the time and half the time I'm not even going somewhere special!" She threw her arms up in the air as we walked out of the elevator and I couldn't help but laugh. "And she _made _me move all my stuff into your apartment…" she paused for a second and then looked over at me, "Sorry about that, by the way," I held up a hand to say it was alright, so she continued. "I tried to tell her it was a bad idea but did she listen? Of course not. For someone so small she sure is scary." She shuddered a little.

"At least I'm not the only one who thinks that," I mused, unlocking the Volvo. She laughed softly and climbed in. As soon I turned the car on, a cd of my music started playing. Quickly, I went to change it, but Bella stopped me.

"Wait, I don't recognize this composer." She said, looking over at me.

"Uh, that's because it's a CD I made…" I kept my eyes on the road.

"Really?" I nodded. "That's cool. I play the piano to, although I'm nowhere near as good as this. I remember when my mother tried to teach me to play and I ended up like breaking the piano basically because I got really mad that I couldn't play Row, Row, Row Your Boat. It was so bad and…." She trailed of for a moment. I looked over at her just in time to see a small blush creep to her cheeks. "And I'm rambling. Sorry, I do that when I get nervous." I chuckled.

"It's fine." I assured, "Much better than having to make conversation." She laughed and I couldn't help but look over at her. She caught my gaze and blushed again before she looked out the window.

I'm pretty sure I might have to thank Alice later.

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_Author's Note: I hope you guys like this story. Please let me know what you think by leaving a review… no mean ones…please._

_**Preview:**_

"_**So I'm curious…" Edward began. I looked up at him and waited for him to continue. "How did Alice force you to move into the apartment?" I sighed.**_

_---Jyssica Marie_


	2. Chapter Two: Dinner

_Author's Note: Here is the next chapter. :) I figured that I would update as often as I could since there might be times when I don't update for about a week or so, with my social life and all. I hope you like it. I tried to add as much humor as I could and I also tried to change it up so that it didn't sound like a lot of the other stories out there. _

_Disclaimer: I might as well stop wishing to own Twilight…After all this time I'm still not Stephanie Meyer_

_**Last Time:**_

"_Really?" I nodded. "That's cool. I play the piano to, although I'm nowhere near as good as this. I remember when my mother tried to teach me to play and I ended up like breaking the piano basically because I got really mad that I couldn't play Row, Row, Row Your Boat. It was so bad and…." She trailed of for a moment. I looked over at her just in time to see a small blush creep to her cheeks. "And I'm rambling. Sorry, I do that when I get nervous." I chuckled. _

"_It's fine." I assured, "Much better than having to make conversation." She laughed and I couldn't help but look over at her. She caught my gaze and blushed again before she looked out the window. _

_I'm pretty sure I might have to thank Alice later._

* * *

**Bella's Point Of View**

So, I basically just made an idiot out of myself to my new roommate…who is absolutely gorgeous. How does Alice expect me to live with this guy and have the ability to control myself around him? This is going to be torture. But…if I had to be a roommate with anyone, I was glad it was Edward. He didn't seem like the old guy I used to live with. I shuddered at the thought and Edward looked at me curiously, but I kept my mouth shut.

Stupid Mike. Ugh, just the thought of him makes my skin crawl. God, what I would give to beat him over the head with a 2 by 4.

"We're here." Edward's velvety voice broke through my thoughts and I realized that we were parked in front of the restaurant and he had already opened my door for me. I climbed out of the car and walked with him into the restaurant.

"Table for two?" the bimbo of a hostess asked without even looking at me. Cool. Edward nodded and we were led to a secluded table in the back. I slid into the booth across from Edward. The hostess handed Edward his menu and dropped mine in front of me. I felt the sudden urge to trip her as she walked away. I opened my mouth to ask Edward a question, but I was cut off by a shrill voice.

"Hi!" A tall woman greeted. She was a brunette, but looked like she should be a blonde. She basically ignored me and looked at Edward. "I'm Jessica and I'll be your waitress for tonight. Can I get you something to drink?" I thought it was pretty amusing that Edward didn't even look at her, though why he wouldn't is beyond me. She was ten times prettier than I was and we had only just met like twenty minutes ago.

"Bella?" Edward asked. This forced Jessica to look over at me even though I could tell she didn't want to acknowledge the fact that I was actually there.

"Uhm… an iced tea please." She nodded and then turned back to Edward with a smile.

"A Dr. Pepper." He said.

"Of course, I'll be right back with your drinks." She walked away and I thought she was going to pull a hip out of place by the way she was swinging them back and forth. I rolled my eyes and looked down at my menu.

"So I'm curious…" Edward began. I looked up at him and waited for him to continue. "How did Alice force you to move into the apartment?" I sighed.

**Flashback**

"_Alice," I sighed, plopping down on her couch. She handed me a cup of coffee and sat down next to me. "I don't know what I'm going to do. There's no way I can live in Mike's apartment now, even if it's for a few days in order for me to find somewhere else for me to live and I'm not going back home. No matter what." When I left home, I made a big deal about not moving back in. But that's another story…_

"_I know, Bella, you could sleep on my couch but…" she trailed off and I shuddered. I knew what her and Jasper were like and I couldn't imagine what they would be like if neither of them had to leave._

"_I pretty sure that-" She cut me off by gasping and then proceeded to slap me repeatedly on the thigh. I grabbed her wrist to stop her before I got a permanent bruise while she looked at me with a grin. I raised an eyebrow, slightly afraid – okay, really scared – of what had gotten her so excited. _

"_Bella!" She all but yelled in my ear. "I have an idea! You know how Jasper moved out of my brother's apartment and now he's the only one living there?" she asked. I nodded a little confused. "You have all your things packed, right?" I nodded again, "I know Edward is at out parent's house and he'll be there for a while, why don't you get Jake to help you move your stuff into Edward's apartment. Once he meets you he won't mind, I'm sure of it. You two have so much in common, he'll thank me in the end." I shook my head in protest. _

"_No, Alice. Bad idea. What if he hates me? Besides the fact that would be breaking and entering and trespassing." I normally always had this feeling in my gut telling me when something was a bad idea and for some reason; I wasn't feeling it at that moment. However, I knew nothing good would come of this. Alice always had crazy ideas…She looked over at me and grinned as she picked something up off the coffee table._

"_Not if you have a key," she sang, waving the key in my face. _

"_Alice…" Jasper began quietly as he walked into the room. He looked between me, Alice, and the key she still had in front of my face a few times with an eyebrow raised before something seemed to click and he groaned. "Alice, are you telling Bella to move in with Edward?" He asked, sitting down next to his girlfriend. She gave him a quick kiss and nodded._

"_She has no where else to go! And I know her and Edward would get a long great!" It seemed as though they had forgotten I was still in the room. _

"_Regardless, it's still not a good idea. You know how Edward is." _

"_See! Even Jasper says it's a bad idea." I was glad I wasn't the only one. _

"_Aw, come on, Bella. Don't be such a spoilsport." Alice pouted. "I know everything will work out perfectly." I sighed as she stuck out her bottom lip. I shot Jasper a glance, but he was just shaking his head lightly. He knew how Alice could be. _

"_Fine!" I yelled, throwing my hands up in the air in defeat. "But if this turns out to be absolutely horrible, I swear to go I will take away all of your credit cards." I knew telling her that I would hit her would do nothing, but taking away her source of shopping would be absolutely torture for her. She grinned._

"_Don't worry. If my credit cards are on the line, I _know _that it will have a happy ending." I groaned and snatched the key from her. "Stupid pixie, always trying to meddle with things." I grumbled to myself as I exited the apartment. _

**End Flashback**

I ended my story and Edward laughed. "That sounds like Alice." He said just as Jessica came back to take our orders.

"What can I get you?" She asked, looking at Edward. I raised an eyebrow at him as I took a sip of my iced tea. We both ordered before Jessica looked back at Edward. "Is there _anything _else I can get you?" Way to be subtle…

"No thank you," Edward replied, not looking at her. Aw, poor girl. She must be mad that he's not even looking at her. I had to admit; it felt good to know that he didn't like her enough to look at her. I wasn't sure why I felt so jealous, it wasn't like we were dating or anything.

"So, Mr. Cullen," I began, making conversation, "What is it that you do?"

"I'm an English teacher at Forks High." I raised an eyebrow. I didn't expect that answer from him. "What do you do?" I took another sip.

"I'm a reporter for the Seattle times." I replied. We sat there and talked for hours like we had been best friends for years. Jessica seemed to be getting irritated that she was being ignored, but I didn't care.

Alice may have been right after all.

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_Author's Note; There it is! Hopefully I'll update _Angel Of Death _within the next day or so. :)_

_**Preview:**_

"_Now I hope you all read Chapter Seven for homework…" I trailed off, looking as the door to the classroom opened. Bella walked in with a grin on her face. She blushed when the entire class turned around to look at her. _

"_Um, sorry to interrupt…" She began. I stood up and walked toward her. "You forgot this at the apartment this morning." She smiled and handed me my briefcase full of school papers. _

"_Thanks." I smiled gratefully and took it from her._

_---Jyssica_


	3. Chapter Three: Class

_Author's Note: I am sooo sorry it took so long to update. I've had a lot more stuff going on that I thought and I've been away and then my computer crashed. My new laptop is still messed up. :( Anyway, I'm going to work on updating _Angel Of Death _as soon as I can. Promise. Until then, enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: Own nothing…_

_**Last Time:**_

"_So, Mr. Cullen," I began, making conversation, "What is it that you do?" _

"_I'm an English teacher at Forks High." I raised an eyebrow. I didn't expect that answer from him. "What do you do?" I took another sip._

"_I'm a reporter for the Seattle times." I replied. We sat there and talked for hours like we had been best friends for years. Jessica seemed to be getting irritated that she was being ignored, but I didn't care. _

_Alice may have been right after all._

* * *

**Edward's Point Of View**

_Beep._

_Beep._

_Beep. _

"_Wake up Seattle! It's six AM and the weatherman is calling for sunshine all day long! Let's start off the morning with a little Lynard Skynard." _I groaned and slammed my fist on the alarm clock. Slowly, I rolled onto my back and pushed myself up to a sitting position. I rubbed my eyes until I could see and took a deep breath, smelling the air around me.

Whoa, pancakes? And bacon?

Confused, I climbed out of bed and trudged my way to the kitchen, wearing only my boxers and a t-shirt. Bella was sitting at the kitchen table, wearing a long, blue, silk robe and a pair of slippers. Her hair was up in a loose bun and she was wearing reading glasses. She had papers spread out in front of her and she was typing away on her laptop. When I opened up the coffee cup cabinet that squeaked, she looked over at me and grinned.

"Good morning, I made breakfast." She motioned to the food on the table.

"Mmm. Smells good. It's been a while since I've had a homemade breakfast before work." I commented. "More coffee?" I gripped the handle of her empty coffee cup. She looked up at me over the rim of her glasses and nodded.

"Yes thank you. Creamer. No sugar." She smiled as I turned to make her a cup. "You better get used to it. I love cooking." She turned back to her laptop as I set the coffee cup down and sat down next to her. I chuckled.

"Good. Because I can only make frozen meals…and toast." She laughed softly, but kept her eyes on her laptop screen.

By the time I had gotten ready for work, Bella had the dishes from breakfast already in the dishwasher and the kitchen was clean. She looked over at me and shrugged.

"I hate leaving dirty dishes sitting around," she said indifferently, turning back to her laptop. "And then I just kept cleaning." She paused and then turned back to look at me. "That doesn't bother you…does it?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Are you kidding? All the other roommates I've had – other than Jasper – wouldn't pick up a damn thing. I'm going to have to get used to it." I smiled. She gave me a grin before I headed off to Forks High School. "Good Morning, class." I greeted my students, leaning against my desk in the front of the room.

"Good Morning, Mr. Cullen." They echoed back to me.

"Now I hope you all read Chapter seven for homework…" I trailed off, looking as the door to the classroom opened. Bella walked in. She blushed when the entire class turned around to look at her.

"Um, sorry to interrupt…" She began. I stood up and walked toward her. "You forgot this at the apartment this morning." She smiled and handed me my briefcase full of school papers.

"Thanks." I smiled gratefully and took it from her. I looked back at the class and saw that they were all watching us carefully. I ushered her out to the empty hallway and closed the classroom door behind us. "You didn't have to drive all the way out here though." It was like an hour drive with traffic. She shrugged.

"It's fine. I had been meaning to come visit my dad anyway, so I decided to kill two birds with one stone." She chuckled. "I should go…." She trailed off, looking at the clock on the wall.

But I wasn't ready for her to leave yet.

"You know, we were just going to start talking about_ Ever After_. You're more than welcome to stay." She bit her lip and started messing with the hem of her sleeve.

"I don't want to interrupt your class…" She was so unlike anyone I had ever met before.

"You won't be interrupting anything, I promise." I smiled at her as she met my gaze. She smiled too.

"Well, if you're sure."

"Positive." She grinned and walked back into the room. "Class, this is Miss Swan. She's going to be observing today. Can you all say hi to her?"

"Hi, Miss Swan." Came a bored reply. Bella smiled at sat down on a desk in the back of the room as I walked back toward my desk.

"Okay, now it's time for your quiz," they groaned, "You knew it was coming," I shrugged, passing out the quizzes to them, "I expect it to be silent and eyes on your own paper." It was silent then and I walked back to the desk where Bella was sitting with a smile. I leaned against the desk and watched the students' frantically writing on their papers.

"Alice wants us to come over tonight," Bella whispered, too quiet for anyone other than us to hear.

"She's not going to cook, is she?" I whispered back. Alice maybe good at a lot of things, but cooking wasn't one of them. Bella laughed softly. It appeared she knew what I was talking about.

"No. I think she's ordering Chinese." I let out a small sigh of relief.

"Thank god." We sat in silence for a few minutes, watching the students again beforeBella spoke again.

"Oh yeah. She said Jasper's sister and her husband were going to be there too." I had meet Rosalie a few times before, but I wasn't even aware of the fact she was married. Hmm.

"Alright." I began after I had collected everyone's quizzes. "Take out your books and read along while I read Chapter eight." I waited for them to get their books out and turn to the right page before I started reading. _"'The Comtesse Nicole de Lancret is already engaged?' Henry repeated weakly. "To a Belgian?" He sat down on the castle steps in disbelief." _**(Chapter Eight ~ Ever After by Wendy Loggia) **

* * *

"Edward, are you ready to go?" I heard Bella call from her room while I pulled my shoes on.

"Yup." I called back. I heard her shoes on the hardwood floor and turned around to see if she was ready.

She looked beautiful. She wore a simple black dress and black shoes. Her hair was in loose curls. She was putting in her earrings when she walked by me and then looked at herself in the mirror. For someone who didn't really care what she looked like, she cleaned up stunningly.

"Do I look okay?" She asked, looking at me with a smile.

"You're perfect." I said without thinking. She blushed, smiled, and threw my car keys at me.

"Come on. Alice will be furious if we're late." She exclaimed, grabbing my arm and pulling me toward the door.

"You're late!" Alice scolded when she opened her apartment door, looking at us with an angry look and her hands on her hips.

"Told you." Bella whispered before she smiled at Alice. "Sorry, Ali, these shoes were buried in my closet and it took me ten minutes to find them." Alice relaxed and grinned at Bella before pulling her into a hug. I rolled my eyes and walked past them, walking into the living room where Jasper was watching T.V. on the couch.

"How's living with Bella?" He asked as I sat down next to him.

"Wonderful so far. She's a good cook and she cleans. Not to mention she's gorgeous." He chuckled and shook his head.

"Rose and her husband should be here soon." Alice was saying as her and Bella walked into the room. "You'll love her, Bella. She's amazing." Bella rolled her eyes and sat down next to me while Alice poured four glasses of wine.

"Charlie wants us to stop by sometime this week. He complains that we don't see him enough."

Charlie. Charlie. Charlie. Oh! Her father. Right.

"You should come meet Esme and Carlisle too! They would love to meet Edward's roommate." Alice grinned, giving me a knowing look. I rolled my eyes and Bella raised an eyebrow.

"Um…okay." She sounded a bit unsure. Alice opened her mouth to speak but there was a knock on the door.

"That'll be Rose." Alice grinned and stood up, rushing to the kitchen.

* * *

_Author's Note: I hope you liked it. Sorry it's a little short…_

_**Preview:**_

_**He looked so familiar. Like a boy I knew in High School. He grinned and I was sure it was him. "Emmett?" I asked, standing up. He looked over at me and his eyes went wide.**_

"_**Bella?"**_

_~Jyssica~_


	4. Chapter Four: New and Old Friends

_Author's Note: So, I definitely have an excuse as to why this update took so long. I'm a senior in high school – first of all – and I have about 14 weeks left of school – second of all – which means work work work work work. And I don't have senioritis – which is the disease of not doing any work towards the end of the school year (although I know some people who've had senioritis since, like, Freshman year) – so I actually do my work. Well, I had some free time and I knew I had to post something since it's been forever and….this is what you get. Sorry if it's not the best. I'm also close to posting the last chapter of _Angel of Death _which means the beginning of it's sequel _Never Alone._ I hope it'll be up today or tomorrow…depending. _

_**Last Time: **_

"_You should come meet Esme and Carlisle too! They would love to meet Edward's roommate." Alice grinned, giving me a knowing look. I rolled my eyes and Bella raised an eyebrow._

_"Um…okay." She sounded a bit unsure. Alice opened her mouth to speak but there was a knock on the door._

_"That'll be Rose." Alice grinned and stood up, rushing to the kitchen._

* * *

**Bella's Point Of View**

"What's Rosalie's husband like?" Edward asked.

"He's a big guy, huge football fan. He's also a big dufus." Jasper explained, rolling his eyes as Edward and I laughed.

"…And Emmett couldn't let it go, so he ran after the guy before I could stop him." A woman was saying as Alice and the other's walked into the room.

The woman who had been talking – Rosalie – was tall and slender. She had long, golden hair and big blue eyes. She looked like a model, and was the type of girl boys drooled over.

Her husband was huge. He seriously looked like he could crush me like a bug. He looked really familiar, like an old friend of mine from high school. He grinned and I knew it was him. "Emmett?" I asked, standing up and walking around to coffee table so I was standing in front of them. He looked at me, a look of confusion and surprise on his face before he beamed at me.

"Bella!" He exclaimed, walking up to me and pulling me into a hug, lifting me off of my feet.

"Emmett, let her go. Her face is turning blue." I heard Rosalie say while I was trying to push myself away from Emmett just enough so I could breathe. I felt Emmett chuckle before he set me down on my feet. As soon as he let me go, I took a deep breath.

I told you he could squish me like a bug if he wanted to.

"Sorry, Bella." Emmett apologized, smiling sheepishly.

"I take it you two know each other?" Rosalie asked, looking at us both suspiciously.

"Emmett here was like my big brother all throughout high school. In fact, no boy ever got to me without going through him and his extensive background checks." I told her with a laugh, sitting back down next to Edward, who was watching us with amusement in his beautiful green eyes.

"I had to, Bells. I had to make sure they were good enough for you." He said with a smile, sitting down next to me, ruffling my hair. I pouted and pushed his hand away from my head.

"Emmett! I'm not sixteen anymore. Cut it out."

"Ha. Sorry. Old habits."

"So, what do you do Bella?" Rosalie asked after a few seconds of silence, sitting down on Emmett's lap.

"I'm a reporter for the Seattle Times. How about you two?" I had always wondered what happened to Emmett after high school.

"Well Emmett is a police officer and I teach mechanics at the Seattle vocational school." Rosalie explained with a small smirk.

That wasn't exactly the job I would have guessed. I would have guessed model, actress, fashion designer…Miss America.

"You teach people how to work on cars?" I asked, glancing at Edward. I seemed to be the only one shocked, unless he was good at covering up his facial expressions…

Rosalie and Emmett looked amused.

"Yup," She answered with a nod. "Is there a problem with that?" She asked. I shook my head quickly, afraid that I had upset her.

"No, of course not. I just...wouldn't have guessed that." She threw her head back and laughed.

"You should see the faces of the boys when I walk in, telling them to call me Mrs. McCarthy." I could only imagine what was going through their heads. Alice came back into the room with two more wine glasses in her hands. She hummed to herself as she poured wine into them and handed a glass to Rosalie and Emmett. We sat around talking for a while before there was a knock on the door.

"That must be dinner." Alice said, standing up.

"You're not cooking?" Rosalie asked, taking a sip of her wine. Alice shook her head and Edward let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank god." He muttered. Alice sent him a glare and I chuckled.

"I'm not a bad cook." Alice protested, walking back into the room with a box full of Chinese food cartons. Edward snorted and picked one up.

"Good try. Do you remember when you were twelve and you wanted to make breakfast for Mom and Dad and you burned the toast?" Edward asked, opening a package of chopsticks. Emmett snorted.

"You burned toast? How do you burn toast?"

"Well, you see, Alice has some mad skill and is probably the only one on earth who can't handle making toast." I answered, sticking my tongue out teasingly at my friend. "Even _I _can handle the toaster, and I'm a danger magnet remember?" Alice was pouting and crossed her arms across her chest.

"Alright, that's enough picking on me." She said. I smiled and put down my carton of food, throwing my arms around her in a hug.

"You know we love you, Alice." I said, chuckling. I saw her roll her eyes and mumble something incoherently before she began to eat again.

"Hey, Bella." Emmett began, and I suddenly had this feeling that I didn't want him to continue with what he was going to say. On the other hand, I was intrigued as to what part of my past he was planning on bringing up. So, I didn't say anything and let him continue. "Remember our graduation when you –"

"Emmett!" I hissed. Now I knew what he was going to say and I had to make sure he didn't. It took me forever to get over the embarrassment the first time. "Can we not bring up embarrassing moments of my past?" Emmett beamed at me and seemed like he was going to drop the subject until Edward chimed in.

"Wait, I want to hear the story."

Unable to help myself I turned and gave him a dirty look. "No, you really don't." I muttered.

"Hm. Actually I do." He looked around me at Emmett. "So, Emmett, what happened?"

I glanced at Emmett and he opened his mouth to speak but was cut off by someone yelling my name. We all froze and looked at each other before I stood up and hurried to the windows, throwing them open and walking onto the fire escape, looking down to see Mike standing there, looking up at me. I couldn't read the expression on his face, but I did have the sudden urge to 'accidentally' drop a brick. "Mike." I hissed. "What do you want?"

"What do you think?" He asked. "I want to talk to you."

I rolled my eyes. "There's nothing to talk about." I replied coldly.

"Come on, Bells." He tried to reason. "Just talk to me. I'm sure we can work this out. I hate living by myself."

"Well, then, have that blonde bimbo I saw you sucking the face off of the other day move in with you!"

It appeared that he didn't know I knew because he stared at me with a deer in headlights look. "I – I don't know what you're talking about, Bella. Whoever you saw obviously wasn't me."

Good try.

I heard Alice from inside the apartment say, "Edward, save her, they'll be out there for hours." I didn't know what she meant by telling him to save me, but I was too preoccupied at yelling at Mike to think about it.

"Don't give me that shit, Mike. You know what I'm talking about, now leave me alone! I've already – "

"Bella." Edward's voice cut me off as he came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. "Play along." He whispered in my ear. I smiled as he kissed my cheek – which I knew Mike saw because he was staring at us with wide eyes.

"Mike, please leave." I told him. "I'm done. We're over. Go home." And with that, Edward and I walked back into Alice's apartment. "Thank you for that." I said as I sat back down and resumed eating the little bit that we left. Edward nodded and did the same before he looked at his watch.

"It's getting late," He stated, looking at me. "Are you ready to go?" I glanced at the clock and saw that it was almost eleven. I stood up quickly, remembering that I had to go to work at seven tomorrow.

"Yup. I have work early tomorrow." We said our goodbye's and hugged a pouting Alice before we headed out the door.

"So," Edward began after a few minutes of silence in his car. "What happened between you and Mike?"

It's going to be a long car ride home…

* * *

_Author's Note: Woop! I have this odd feeling that this is going to be a massively long story…so stop reading now if you want something short!_

_Reviews make me happy!_

_**Preview: **_

_She was silent for a moment and I glanced over at her only to find tears leaking from her eyes. Great. Now I feel like a dick._

"_I'm sorry!" I exclaimed, wondering if it was my question that made her cry. "I didn't mean to make you cry!" _

_**~Jyssica~**_


	5. Chapter Five: Spiders

_Author's Note: I know it's super short and I apologize. But the next chapter is really long, which should make up for it. I have a lot of work to do this weekend but the next chapter is almost done so it might be up. And I promise I will finish Angel of Death this week. Probably in the middle when I have nothing else to do._

_**Last Time: **_

_It's getting late," He stated, looking at me. "Are you ready to go?" I glanced at the clock and saw that it was almost eleven. I stood up quickly, remembering that I had to go to work at seven tomorrow._

_"Yup. I have work early tomorrow." We said our goodbye's and hugged a pouting Alice before we headed out the door._

_"So," Edward began after a few minutes of silence in his car. "What happened between you and Mike?"_

_It's going to be a long car ride home…_

* * *

**Edward's Point of View: **

Bella let out a long sigh and I hoped I didn't upset her. From what I heard from her argument with Mike, he apparently cheated on her with a "blonde bimbo," but I wanted to hear the whole story. It was odd, for some reason I wanted to knock him out for hurting Bella, which was an odd feeling for me since the only person I wanted to protect like that was Alice. And she was my sister. The more I thought about what Alice had done to get Bella to move in the more I thought that she might have some ulterior motive.

But, with Alice, that wasn't much of a shock.

"We met in high school," Bella began, looking out her window. "We were friends when he started playing on the football team and then began to hung out with Emmett. I didn't really like him at first. I mean, we were friends and all, but nothing more than that." She stopped as we got out of the car and then continued as we walked side by side up to the apartment. "Well we began to spend a lot of time together – because him and Emmett were good friends – and I went to the prom with him and, I don't know. Somewhere along the line I started to like him." She paused again as we stepped into the elevator and an elderly couple stepped out. "We started dating at the end of Senior year. Went to the same college, and eventually moved in together." We stepped off the elevator and walked down the hall. I unlocked the door and opened it, letting her walk into the apartment first. "We lived together for a few months…and then things began to change. He would not come home for a few days. We stopped going on our weekly dates. He barely touched me…" She took a deep, shaky breath, "It was late one night – a few days ago – and he didn't come home. I was upset and decided to go on a walk through the park, where I found him and some blonde chick sucking each other's faces off. I ran back home and packed all of my things. He didn't come home that night and, the next day, I moved here without telling him." She finished with a sigh, leaning against the kitchen counter with a glass of water in her hand.

"Did you love him?" I asked, unable to help myself. She was silent for a moment and I glanced over at her only to find tears leaking from her eyes. Great. Now I feel like a dick. "I'm sorry!" I exclaimed, wondering if it was my question that made her cry. "I didn't mean to make you cry!" I made my way over to her, wrapping her in a hug because I didn't know what else to do. I wasn't very good and comforting women, I usually did the one thing I knew how to do.

Bella sobbed into me for a few minutes until she shook her head. "It's not your fault." She wailed. I wondered if she had cried like this over him before. "He was the first guy I ever loved and I wasn't even enough for him." She sniffled. "What's the matter with me?" I put my hands on her shoulders and pulled her away from me, making sure that she was looking me in the eye. I couldn't believe that she thought there was something wrong with her. How could she think that? She's perfect.

Whoa! Where did that come from? I can't be falling for my roommate.

_But you are_. A voice in my head said.

And that was Alice's concealed reason for getting Bella to move in with me, which didn't surprise me. She was always telling me how I needed someone in my life. "Bella, listen to me." She looked at me with wide eyes. "There's _nothing_ wrong with you. You're beautiful, smart, funny, caring. Any guy would be lucky to have you."

With every word I said, I knew that I was getting closer and closer to that fine line between roommates and _more_.

Bella sniffled again and wiped her eyes with her sleeve. "Really?" She squeaked. I nodded with a smile, giving her one last hug before she announced that she was going to take a shower.

I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair when she had disappeared down the hallway. I shrugged off my coat, hanging it on the nearby coat rack, and sat down, taking my shoes off when I heard a shriek come from the bathroom. My head snapped up and I saw Bella running towards me, a horrified look on her face. "Bella?" I asked, standing up. She ducked behind me, clutching onto my arm. "What's the matter?"

"There's a _huge_ spider in the bathroom!"

I suppressed a laugh and headed for the bathroom, Bella following behind me, still gripping my arm. "Where is it?" I asked. She lifted a shaky hand to point to the shower. Sure enough, as I peaked inside, there was a daddy long-legs crawling on the side of the shower certain. Instead of killing it, I reached out, without Bella knowing, and let it crawl onto my hand. I turned around to face Bella, who looked like she was ready for me to say that I killed it. Instead, I put my hand – and the spider – in front of her face. "This is what you're afraid of?" I asked, amused.

"Yes!" She shrieked, running away from me. I laughed and followed her. "Edward! It's not funny! Get it away from me!"

"Bella, relax. It's just a little spider."

"There's nothing little about that beast!" She dove for the couch, burring her head in the cushions and covering her head with her hands. I chuckled and made my way back to the bathroom, grabbing the spider from my hand with a tissue and then flushing it down the toilet before I walked back out to the living room, where Bella was still in her previous position.

"Bella, it's gone."

She peaked at me through her arm. I held up my hands to prove I was telling the truth and she let out a sigh of relief. "That wasn't funny." She muttered, crossing her arms across her chest.

"On the contrary. I thought it was very amusing." I said with a chuckle.

"I'm going to shower." She declared, walking off.

I sat myself down on the couch and started flipping through the channels in an attempt to find something to watch before I was tired enough to go to sleep.

News. Teen Cribs. 16 and Pregnant. The Nanny. Lifetime Movie. Vampire Diaries. In Plain Sight. Law And Order: SVU. E! News. Intervention. Hannah Montana.

Hmm. Decisions. Decisions.

I sighed, turning the T.V. off, and headed for my room. I figured that maybe a little piano playing would distract me until I was ready to sleep. Besides, I had been having this odd urge to write a new composition…something I hadn't done in a _long _while. Years, I think. I sat down at the keyboard and rested my fingers on the delicate black and white keys.

One of the disadvantages of living in an apartment; a grand piano simply doesn't fit.

I closed my eyes and began to play, letting the notes flow. I wasn't sure what I was playing, but I liked whatever it was, it was soft and beautiful. After a few minutes, I opened my eyes and saw Bella's reflection in the window in front of me. It appeared that she had been watching me. I stopped playing and spun around on the stool I was sitting on. Her hair was soaking wet and she was wearing a navy blue robe with her arms crossed across her chest and a small smile on her face.

Blue was definitely her color.

"I'm sorry," she said, blushing. "I didn't mean to disturb you, but what you were playing sounded so pretty, I had to listen," she explained. "What was it?"

I shrugged. "I honestly have no idea. I just sort of…started playing it."

"Hmm…Well it was nice nonetheless," said Bella. She left the door way and walked down the hallway. I let out a small sigh and turned back around to the keyboard. I pulled out some paper and began to write the notes of what I had just played. It didn't take long before I yawned and suddenly felt extremely tired. I changed into a quick pair of sweatpants and decided that it was warm enough to not wear a pajama top to bed. I wandered out into the kitchen and got a quick drink of water. Bella had already seemed to go to bed because all the lights were off and the door was locked.

Once back in my room, I glanced out the window quickly, hearing a bit of thunder in the distance, and then climbed into bed, pulling the comforter over my head and falling into a deep sleep.

I was woken up a few hours later by a loud crash. I jumped out of bed, after nearly having a heart attack, until I realized that it was only thunder and I climbed back into bed. I closed my eyes and was almost asleep when I heard the creek of my door open. I opened my eyes slowly and saw Bella standing there. She looked a bit shaken up. "Bella?" I asked, sitting up a little, "What's the matter?"

* * *

_Author's Note: Again, sorry it's so short. But, like I said, the next one is much longer. It's not done yet and it's already double this length. And things will begin to speed up after the next chapter. I know they seem like they're going super slow, but they'll go faster. Promise. :)_

_**Preview:**_

_There was another pause and then she squealed. Well, she seemed more awake now. "Bella! This is fate! I'm telling you!"_

"_Alice, what are you talking about?"_

"_Don't you see?" I waited for her to continue, but she didn't._

"_Obviously not, otherwise I wouldn't have asked."_

_~Jyssica~_


	6. Chapter Six: Esme and Carlisle

_Author's Note: Here's the next chapter! I have no idea why, but I've really been in the mood to write this story lately. Which is good for you guys._

_Disclaimer: I own Mrs. Embers and Carrie, but that's it. :(_

_**Last Time:**_

_I was woken up a few hours later by a loud crash. I jumped out of bed, after nearly having a heart attack, until I realized that it was only thunder and I climbed back into bed. I closed my eyes and was almost asleep when I heard the creek of my door open. I opened my eyes slowly and saw Bella standing there. She looked a bit shaken up. "Bella?" I asked, sitting up a little, "What's the matter?"_

* * *

**Bella's Point of View**

I was in the middle of one of the most amazing dreams over. You know, one of those that you never want to wake up from? That's what I was having. And it was absolutely wonderful...until a loud crash woke me from my dream and I saw up straight, looking to see what was going on.

There was a thunder storm.

I've been afraid of thunder storms ever since I could remember. Before I could run in to my parents room, or I was with Alice or Mike. Now, I'm alone and scared out of my mind. Edward's just down the hall, will it be awkward if I went down there and asked to stay in his room? Well, I decided that I didn't care and darted down the hall, bursting into his bed room to find him sleeping peacefully, with no shirt on I might add. He looked more beautiful than I had ever seen him before and it took a moment for me to remember to breathe. He must have heard me come in because his eyes opened and he looked at me with a confused look on his face. "Bella?" He asked, sitting up a little. "What's the matter?"

I bit my lip and said simply, "I'm afraid of thunderstorms." The next crash of thunder made me jump and covered up what I was sure was a chuckle from him. "Can I stay in here with you for a while? You can go back to sleep if you like, but I don't want to be alone." He didn't say anything but he patted the spot on the bed next to him. I smiled and walked toward the bed after closing the door behind me. We sat in silence for a while, I covered myself up with the blanket and expected him to go back to sleep but he didn't.

"Why are you afraid of thunderstorms?" He asked. I sighed and started fidgeting with the blue comforter covering me.

"I'm not sure, I've just always been afraid of them. I have these anxiety attacks when I'm alone during them." I explained. "Every time there's been a thunder storm in the past I was always with someone. I know we haven't known each other for long, but there was no way I would have been able to stay in my room by myself without freaking out. And I mean freaking out as in crying my eyes out and shaking." I looked at him to find his green eyes watching me curiously. "I hope you don't mind me waking you up." He shook his head but laid back on his pillow.

"I don't mind. I would rather you wake me up than be a crying mess in your room." He said, smiling. Unable to help myself, I laid down back and rested my head on the pillow, rolling over so I was looking at him. There was silence again until he asked, "Does anything else cause these anxiety attacks of yours?"

"High wide open spaces."

"Well, that just ruined my plans to take you skydiving."

"Damn…" I muttered as my eyelids began to feel heavy. It was still thundering and lightning outside, but I felt so safe with Edward that I wasn't even paying attention to it anymore.

I was about to sit up so I wouldn't fall asleep when I heard Edward whisper, "Sleep, Bella." Which was the last thing I heard before I drifted into sleep.

I woke up confused and disoriented. It took me a few minutes to remember what had happened the night before and then I realized that I had fallen asleep in Edward's bed…with Edward still in it.

Oh, fuck.

I looked over only to see that he wasn't there. Sighing loudly, I stood up and made my way out to the kitchen where Edward sat grading some papers. He didn't look up at me as I poured myself a cup of coffee but greeted me with a good morning. I made myself some toast with strawberry jelly and sat down at the kitchen table across from Edward. The silence droned on and – after a while – I couldn't handle it anymore. I all but slammed my coffee cup down, causing Edward to look up at me with curious eyes, and I let out a groan. "I'm really sorry about last night." I began. "I didn't plan on falling asleep in your bed…."

He looked up at me and smiled. He didn't seem upset. "Relax, Bella." He stood up and walked over to the counter, getting himself another cup of coffee.

"Are you sure?"

I was pretty sure I saw him roll his eyes before he turned around to look at me again. "Positive." He beamed before taking a sip. He glanced at something to his left – which I guessed was the clock – and then back to me. "Aren't you supposed to be to work in half an hour?" He asked. I raised an eyebrow and then looked at the clock as well.

Six thirty.

"I overslept!" I exclaimed, standing up and rushing to the bathroom, stuffing the last bit of toast in my mouth. After I was dressed in a black pencil skirt, a white button-down shirt, and black flats – which happened to be the one most girly outfit in my wardrobe that I actually wore thanks to Alice – I downed the rest of my coffee and walked back out into the kitchen. Edward was dressed in his work clothes as well, but was still doing some paperwork. _He _didn't need to be to work until seven forty-five. He looked up at me and blinked a few times. I instantly took that as a bad sign. "Do I look bad?" I asked frantically, knowing that it didn't really matter what I said because there wasn't time to find a new outfit.

He shook his head quickly, thankfully. "No. Absolutely not."

"Good. Because I'm going to be late." I threw on my jacket, grabbed my laptop, and rushed to work.

"Morning, Bella!" My assistant, Carrie, said with a wide smile, her bright blue eyes sparkling as she looked at me over the top of her cubical. She had long golden curls and an _extremely_ bubbly person. She kind of reminded me of Rosalie but with Alice's personality…which was scary.

"Good morning, Carrie. Any messages?" She nodded and handed me a stack.

"Oh! And Mrs. Embers wants to see in her office ASAP." I sighed and nodded in thanks before walking into the small room I called my office. I placed my laptop on the desk, took of my coat, and then headed for the editor-in-chief's office.

Mrs. Embers – also known as Leona – was older than I was, but not by much, with long red hair and pretty emerald eyes. She was a fairly nice woman…when she was in a good mood. We got along well, as long as no one had ticked her off before I met with her. Luckily, it was first thing in the morning so it was pretty much assured that she would be in a good mood.

"Ah, Bella!" She exclaimed, looking up at me from her computer. "Just the woman I wanted to see." I smiled and sat down in the chair across from her desk and took out a pad and pen, ready to take notes if needed. "I wanted to let you know that I _loved_ your last article." I thanked her and then waited to see what assignment I would have next. "Now, for the next paper, I would like you to do a piece on Esme Cullen – the interior decorator. I don't want a whole biography, but I would like you to find out how she got into interior decorating, what type of decorating she does and a _little _bit about her family. Got it? Front page in the Life and Style section." I scribbled quickly, hiding my shock over her name. _Esme Cullen_. I thought over and over again. That couldn't be Edward's mother…could it? "Good. You have a meeting with her in half an hour. Carrie will give you the address." Apparently that was the end of the meeting because she began typing away on her computer again.

As soon as the meeting was over, I immediately called Alice.

"Bella?" She asked.

"I don't mean to call so early," I began, realizing that it wasn't even eight yet. "But I have a question for you."

"Relax, Jazz, it's just Bella." Alice was saying with her mouth away from the phone, "Okay, shoot."

"Is your mom Esme Cullen, the interior decorator?"

There was a pause before she slowly said, "Yes…"

"Well I guess I'm meeting your mom today because I'm doing an article on her and we have in half an hour." I took a piece of paper from Carrie and mouthed a thank you before walking into my office and sitting down.

There was another pause and then she squealed. Well, she seemed more awake now. "Bella! This is fate! I'm telling you!"

"Alice, what are you talking about?"

"Don't you see?" I waited for her to continue, but she didn't.

"Obviously not, otherwise I wouldn't have asked."

"You and Edward were obviously meant to be together! I mean, think about it. You decided to move out of Mike's apartment when Edward was looking for a roommate. And then you have an assignment that requires you to meet his mom...and dad, I might add. Carlisle is off of work today and will more than likely be there." My eyes widened a little at her 'conclusion.' I heard her clap her hands and let out a squeal.

"Alice...you're insane."

"You're just saying that because you know I'm right." She sang.

"No. I'm saying that because it's true. Alice, I've known him for like...three days. " I was now halfway to my car, since it would take me fifteen minutes or so to get to Esme's house.

"True love has no time limits."

"Alice, listen to me." I slid into my truck and finished my statement before I turned on the ignition. "You. Need. Help. There is nothing between Edward and I and nothing is ever going to happen," _because he should be with someone much better than me. _I added in my head, though I had _no idea_ where the thought came from.

"If you say so Bella." She sighed, even though I knew she hadn't given up on the idea yet. "Now, go and have a nice meeting with Esme and Carlisle. Tell them I said hi!" She finished with a giggle before hanging up on me. I sighed and revved my beat up old car to life, heading for the Cullen's home.

As I drove, I thought about what I would say to Esme when I met her. _Hi. My name is Bella Swan. I was sent from the Seattle times to interview you. Oh, and did I mention your daughter is my best friend and I'm your sons new roommate? _That would be a great opening statement.

"It's going to be a long day..." I muttered to myself as I stood outside the door of the beautiful - and big - home that Alice's parents lived in. And when I say big, I mean huge. Huge as in why Edward and Alice moved out of here into tiny apartments is beyond me. Slowly, and with a lot of hesitation, I knocked on the door.

After a minute or so, a woman shorter than I was, but taller than Alice, opened the door. She had a very pretty smile, brown eyes, and long wavy caramel colored hair. Standing behind her was a taller man with blonde hair and hazel eyes. He looked familiar...I think he was my doctor at the hospital once...

...Which wouldn't surprise me with my lack of gracefulness.

"You must be the reporter from the Seattle Times. I'm Esme Cullen and this is my husband, Carlisle." Esme said warmly, holding out a hand to me. I shook both of their hands and smiled back. Even though I had been so nervous before, I suddenly was a lot more at ease.

"That would be me. I'm Bella Swan. It's nice to meet you both." As I said my name, they glanced at each other.

"Bella Swan? I've heard your name somewhere before...Do you happen to know our daughter, Alice?"

I nodded and smiled at her. "I do. Alice is my best friend." I answered. "At the risk of sounding rude, can I come in? I think it's going to rain." Not much of a shock for Forks, Washington.

"Of course! Come in! Come in!" Esme quickly ushered me inside, which was much more beautiful than I had anticipated, although, what else would you expect from the home of an interior decorator? She led me into a large dining room where there were three coffee cups and a pot of coffee in the middle of the table. "So, if your Alice's best friend," she said as she was pouring the coffee. "Does that mean your -"

"Edward's roommate? Yup. That's me." She smirked a little, giving Carlisle a look and sat back down. I raised an eyebrow and then pulled out a notepad and pen out of my purse.

We sat and talked for hours and I learned so much. Carlisle was the doctor that fixed my broken leg when I was six. Esme was an _extremely_ nice woman who adopted Edward when he was three years old and then she had Alice a year later. Once both Edward and Alice were in middle school, she decided to spend her days doing the thing she loved the most, decorating – mainly her house and the houses of those she knew well. At first, she only wanted to do it while Edward and Alice were at school, but she loved it so much that she turned it into a career. She showed me a few pictures of what she had done, and then showed me around her house, she was phenomenal. Like when I move out of the apartment and get my own house I want her to decorate it.

I returned to work about three hours later where I had a meeting about the next paper that lasted for two and a half hours because that dumb colleague of mine – Jack – couldn't not keep his trap shut and rambled on and on about _nothing_. Finally I was free to go home, thank goodness.

The moment I walked through the door I heard the T.V. on in the other room. Of course, Edward was home. He's so lucky he gets to go home at 3 O'clock…

"I am so exhausted…" I mumbled as I walked into the living room, kicking off my shoes. I walked toward the couch and, not surprisingly, tripped over something – probably my own foot – and fell onto the couch next to Edward, who laughed at me. "Are you opposed to ordering a pizza tonight? I'm not in the mood to cook."

I had closed my eyes so I didn't see his reaction, but he said, "Of course not."

I stood up a moment later to get myself a glass of wine, because I was in desperate need of one, and I said to Edward as I walked out of the room, "I met your parents today."

"What?!" I heard him exclaim as I entered the kitchen, I smiled and pulled myself down a wine glass. I turned around and saw him rush into the kitchen. "What do you mean you met my parents?"

"I mean I went to their house and talked with them for _hours_." I replied. His eyes grew wide and he looked beyond confused. I giggled – which was odd because I wasn't a giggler – and continued, "I'm doing an article for the paper on Esme and her wonderful career as an interior decorator, so I had to go and meet with her today. Carlisle just happened to be there." I explained. He seemed to relax a little. "They are wonderful, really nice people." I continued. "Esme wants you to call her." I said, remembering the message I was told to relay.

"Well…" He began thoughtfully, "since you met my parents I guess it's only fair that I meet yours." He smiled crookedly at me as I stared at him with wide eyes. I can only imagine what would happen when he met Charlie and I told him that we were living together…

"You don't want to meet my parents."

"It's only fair!" He called over his shoulder as he walked back into the living room.

* * *

_Author's Note: I hope this was long enough for you guys. I know that's one thing I have to work on. _

_P.S. Review please! They make me happy!_

_**Preview:**_

"_Where did Bella go?" I asked when Rose and Alice had returned, without Bella. They looked around and then looked at each other._

"_Um… She was just with us. Where did she – " I didn't finish listening to them before I sprinted away from them._

_~Jyssica~_


	7. Chapter Seven: Clubbing

_Author's Note: Here's the next chapter! It's supposed to take place a few months after the last few chapters. Um…I guess that's it. I hope you like it!_

_Disclaimer: Own nothing…_

**_Last Time:_**

_"Well…" He began thoughtfully, "since you met my parents I guess it's only fair that I meet yours." He smiled crookedly at me as I stared at him with wide eyes. I can only imagine what would happen when he met Charlie and I told him that we were living together…_

_"You don't want to meet my parents."_

_"It's only fair!" He called over his shoulder as he walked back into the living room._

* * *

**Edward's Point Of View:**

"Alice! I can't believe you're making me do this!" Bella's voice rang out from her bedroom. I had no idea what they were doing in there but they had been in there for hours, but I'm pretty sure my sister was torturing poor Bella. At least, that's what it sounded like.

"Bella, shush." Alice's voice was louder now as if she had opened the door. "You've been working super hard and now it's time for you to relieve all of your stress. That dress better be on by the time I get back!" She skipped into the living room, where I was sitting watching the news, and beamed at me. To be honest, it was a little scary.

"What do you want?" I asked cautiously.

"You're coming clubbing with us." She stated, putting her hands on her hips. I was going to protest but I head Bella's stomping feet coming down the hall so I kept my mouth shut, assuming she would have just cut me off anyway. Besides, I wanted to see what Alice had done to her over the past few hours.

She looked beautiful. Her hair was curled and pulled back. She was wearing a short, kind of tight, navy blue dress and black high heels.

I couldn't stop staring.

"You really expect me to wear this?!" She exclaimed, glaring at Alice.

"Yes."

"Alice," Bella whined, "I look like a whore."

"No you don't," I chimed in, unable to help myself. She looked over at me and I smiled reassuringly at her as Alice beamed.

"See, you're fine. And Edward's coming with us so he can protect you from all the freaks." Alice reached over and pinched Bella's cheeks – hard. It reminded me of what my grandmother used to do when I was young.

"Alice! What the fuck!" Bella yelled, swatting Alice's hands away.

"You needed some color in your pale cheeks, calm your hormones." She rolled her eyes, "Now," Alice began, clapping her hands together, "I have to go get ready, so I'm taking over your bedroom, Bella." Bella sighed and walked over to the couch, carefully sitting down.

"That's fine, I'll stay here and wait for everyone else to show up." She said. Alice grinned and then bounced down the hall. It took all I had to keep my eyes on the T.V. screen. "Are you really coming with us?" She asked once we heard Alice close Bella's bedroom door.

"I guess I am now."

We lapsed into a silence for what seemed like forever, but it was a comfortable silence. Over the past few months that we have lived together, I had become very comfortable around Bella, more relaxed than I was with anyone else...which was strange. It was like we had know each other for years. And I felt the weird...pull toward her. Ugh, maybe that's not the right way to explain it. It was more of an attraction I guess. I mean, I was attracted to her...which was definitely not a good thing, at least in my eyes. Alice would love to hear me say that, not that I would ever tell her. Not only did I feel attracted toward Bella, but I felt really protective of her. I'd take a bullet to the heart for her if it meant that she was okay.

A knock on the door broke through my thoughts and I glanced over at Bella to see her stand up to answer it, although she didn't need to because Emmett just barged in.

"Emmett! You don't just barge into people apartments!" Rosalie was saying as I heard them walk through the kitchen.

"Relax, Rosie, it's just Edward and Bella." Emmett said before they walked into the room. Emmett glanced at Bella and then grinned, wolf-whistling at her. Bella blushed and sat back down. "Man, look at you, Bells. All grown up." He reached over to ruffle her hair but she grabbed his wrist to stop him.

"Alice will kill you if you mess up my hair." She stated. Rosalie - who was wearing a short, bright red dress - laughed and then made her way down the hall.

"Eddy, are you coming to the club with us?" Emmett asked, sitting down on the arm of the couch. I was surprised my end didn't fly up in the air from his weight.

"Don't call me that." I hissed. "And yes, my sister is making me come with you guys." Not that I mind because then I don't have to sit at home worrying about Bella getting hit on my douchebags.

"Let's go!" Alice sang as she came bouncing back into the room, in a pink dress of course, Rosalie following behind her. Alice grabbed onto Jasper's arm and tugged him out of the room. "Rosalie, Emmett, you're riding with us. Bella can ride with Edward." She called from the kitchen.

"I still can't believe she's making me do this." Bella moaned as we walked toward the elevator, the other four already left. "I know for a fact I'm going to fall in these shoes. I'm clumsy enough as it is, I don't need six inch heels to add to it." She sighed and carefully stepped into the elevator. "I'll spend most of the night on the ground." She added.

"Don't worry, I'll catch you." I assured her with a smile. She blushed again and smiled back, though she didn't say anything.

"I went to a club once," I said as I drove toward the Tilt Nightclub, "when Alice tried to set me up with some girl. To be honest, I don't remember her name. Most disastrous night of my life."

"Alice has been dragging me with her at least once a month since we became friends." Bella told me, "Except for recently. I think this is the first time we've gone in several months."

"Does she always make you dress like…that?"

"No!" She exclaimed, "These are the tallest shoes and shortest dress…I think she's up to something."

"Knowing Alice…she is."

"I just wish I knew what it was so I could prepare myself for it."

Looking for parking was insane, but I finally whipped into a spot close enough to the door so we wouldn't have to walk for ages. We meet the rest of the group at the end of the line and, ten minutes later, we were in the club. Alice and Rosalie drug Emmett and Jasper to the dance floor while Bella and I walked to the bar. I looked at Bella as she ordered a Long Island Ice Tea and I ordered a beer.

"I'd be more than happy to stay here all night instead of on the dance floor." Bella stated, "but, sadly, I know Alice will drag me out there soon. I'm hoping that Jasper can distract her enough so I only have to be out there for a little bit."

But her dream didn't come true because – not ten minutes after she had said that – Alice bounced over and pulled her to the middle of the floor, away from me. Rosalie joined them while Jasper and Emmett sat down next to me.

"Bella looks nice tonight." Emmett stated. I wasn't looking at him, but I could tell by the sound of his voice that he was smirking.

That's an understatement. "Yeah…" I agreed, not really paying much attention to them. They got into a conversation about something I didn't catch when someone grabbed my arm. I looked over and saw Bella with Alice and Rosalie still, meaning that the person grabbing onto me was a stranger. I turned around to face the blue eyed blonde in front of me with a raised eyebrow.

"Hey, handsome," She said, her voice annoyingly high pitched – and I think she was trying to make it look sexy…not that it worked – "Do you have a quarter?"

"Um…" What an odd question, "What for?"

She smiled – creepily I might add, "I just want to call my sister and let her know I've met the man of my dreams." Oh, good lord…

She began to prattle on about god knows what, but I was pretty much ignoring her. She wasn't at all my type, that was for sure. I glanced back at the dance floor, but the girls had disappeared. Hopefully that meant they were on their way back, so this girl – whose name I think was Amber or something like that – would go away.

"Where did Bella go?" I asked when Rose and Alice had returned, without Bella. They looked around and then looked at each other.

"Um… She was just with us. Where did she – " I didn't finish listening to them before I sprinted away from them.

I searched around frantically for Bella until I finally found her, surrounded by a few guys, with tears in her eyes, clutching her ankle. "Bella!" I called, relieved that she hadn't been kidnapped or anything.

"Edward?" She responded. I pushed two guys out of my way and then knelt down next to her.

"Are you alright?" I asked, trying to see if something was wrong with her ankle, but I couldn't because her hands were holding it.

"No," She cried, "I think it's broken."

"Let me see." I carefully slipped off her shoe to look at it – grateful that I had picked up a few things from Carlisle – and, just as I thought, it was swollen. "Hmm, it might very well be broken. You'll need to get some ice on that as soon as possible. Come one, I'll take you home…can you walk?"

She bit her lip, "I – I don't think so."

"Alright," I handed her shoe to her, leaned down, wrapped my arm around her back, lifting her up effortlessly. "I've got you." She wrapped her arms around my neck, her shoe still in her hand.

"Bella!" Alice's voice rang out before she came bursting through the crowd, Jasper at her side. "I'm _so _sorry, I really thought you were behind us."

"Alice, it's no biggie. I'm fine." She would say that…

"She messed up her ankle." I told Alice, "I'm going to take her home." Alice nodded and called goodbye to us as I headed for the exit.

"Once we get home, you can come back and party some more," Bella began the second I sat down in the driver's seat. "I'll be fine by myself."

"I'm not going back." I stated. "I'm going to stay home and take care of you." I glanced over at her just in time to see her blush.

"Really, you can go back to that blonde you were talking to. She was pretty…" Her last sentence was almost inaudible.

_Really, _I thought, _I didn't notice what she looked like because I was watching you. _But, of course, I couldn't say that, so – instead – I said, "Eh, she had an annoying voice. I would kill myself if I had to listen to it everyday." Her face was composed so I couldn't read her expression. "Besides," I added, "I prefer brunettes." _Like you._

I pulled into my parking spot and got out of the car, rushing to the passenger side and lifting Bella out of the car, closing the car door with my foot.

"This is ridiculous." She all but pouted as we stood in the moving elevator.

"Would you just cam down and let me help you?"

"Fine." She huffed.

As I walked down the hall to our apartment, I saw the elderly couple who lived across the hall standing outside theirs, the old man slowly unlocking the door.

"See, Archie, I told you those two were together," The woman whispered to her husband before smiling at Bella and I. "It's nice to see that some guys still know how to treat their girlfriends right. It does an old woman's heart well."

"Oh, actually – "

"Ah, thresholds are part of my job description." I told her with a smile, cutting Bella off. The old woman beamed at us and then disappeared into their apartment.

"Why did you tell her that?" Bella asked as I walked down the hall toward her bedroom.

"Didn't you hear what she said?" Bella stared at me blankly. "_'It does an old woman's heart well_.'" I quoted.

"_Oh!_ I get it."

I gently laid Bella down in her bed, disappeared for a moment to get her a bag of ice and, when I had returned, she was changed into pajamas and under her blankets.

"How did –"

"It was very difficult." She answered with a small giggle, "I had to limp and hold onto things." I nodded and lifted the blanket from her foot and then carefully wrapped the ice pack around her ankle. "That's not going to melt…is it? That would be really messy."

"No." I answered. "It'll just get warm. The good news is that tomorrow is Sunday so you can stay off of it. If it's still swollen I'll take you to see Carlisle." She opened her mouth – I guessed to protest – but she yawned instead. "Here." I handed her an aspirin and a glass of water. "This'll help." She took the pill, placing the water next to her.

"Thank you." She smiled.

"You're welcome." I smiled back as I headed for the door. "Goodnight, Bella."

"Night, Edward."

* * *

_Author's Note: There's a picture of all three girls' dresses on the link that's on my profile. If you have any problems finding them…let me know!_

_Reviews make me happy, and I need that right now. My life is stressful…_

_**Preview:**_

"_Holy shit, Bella!" Emmett exclaimed, sounding more amused than concerned, "You really went to town on that girl, are you okay?"_

"_Fine." I muttered and then rubbed my shoulder. Edward still had his arm around my waist…not that I really minded that. _

_~Jyssica~_


	8. Chapter Eight: Mall Brawl

_Author's Note: Here's the next chapter! I hope you guys like it, I worked hard on it. _

_Disclaimer: If I owned Twilight…my life would be complete. But, sadly, it's not because I don't._

_**Last Time:**_

"_It was very difficult." She answered with a small giggle, "I had to limp and hold onto things." I nodded and lifted the blanket from her foot and then carefully wrapped the ice pack around her ankle. "That's not going to melt…is it? That would be really messy."_

_"No." I answered. "It'll just get warm. The good news is that tomorrow is Sunday so you can stay off of it. If it's still swollen I'll take you to see Carlisle." She opened her mouth – I guessed to protest – but she yawned instead. "Here." I handed her an aspirin and a glass of water. "This'll help." She took the pill, placing the water next to her._

_"Thank you." She smiled._

_"You're welcome." I smiled back as I headed for the door. "Goodnight, Bella."_

_"Night, Edward."_

* * *

**Bella's Point of View:**

"Bella!" Alice all but screamed in my ear, waking me up from the deep sleep I was in. "Wake up!" I groaned and reached for a nearby pillow, covering my head with it. Maybe if I ignore her long enough, she'll go away.

"Alice," A velvety voice said. _Edward_. I thought and immediately smiled. "If you gently and quietly wake her up, it'll work better." His voice was full of amusement and then I felt his strong hand on my side, shaking me a little. "Bella." He whispered, "Alice is here to see you." Slowly, I pushed the pillow from off of my head and opened my eyes, meeting his green eyes with my own. I forgot to breathe for a moment when I saw his smiling, but then I recovered and looked over at Alice as I sat up.

"Hello, Alice," I greeted quietly, my voice was a little hoarse.

"Good morning. Bella." She looked over at Edward, giving him some kind of look, and then he left the room. "Don't you remember what day it is?" She asked when she finally looked back at me.

"Err...Saturday?" I answered lamely. She rolled her eyes.

"Today is the big shopping trip!" She exclaimed, clapping her hands together.

_"That's_ what I woke up for? Ugh, I'm going back to bed." I flopped back down on the pillow and covered my head with the covers.

But Alice wasn't having that.

"Nuh-uh, Missy. Don't even think about it." She ripped the covers off of me and then jumped on the bed.

"Alright! I'm up!' I exclaimed, nearly leaping from my bed. Her jumping on it was starting to make me nauseous. "Jesus." I muttered as I left the room. I knew that she would be taking the time to pick out my outfit so that meant I had time to get some breakfast - a cup of coffee and toast.

"Good morning, Bella." Edward greeted with a smile, looking up from whatever he was looking at.

"Morning," I greeted, suddenly in a better mood than I was 30 seconds ago.

It was weird, I felt more for Edward in the four months that I had known him than I ever did for Mike…which scared the hell out of me. I'm beginning to think that it started when I first met him, possibly. But I didn't really realize anything until that night a few weeks ago when we all went to the club.

**Flashback**

"_Bella!" Alice exclaimed from behind me before she grabbed my arm. "Come dance with us." She yanked me from my chair and pulled me to the middle of the dance floor – where the music was significantly louder than it was by the bar. I decided that I might as well dance and get it over with now to make Alice happy, then I might be able to relax the rest of the evening. _

"_Alice, I'm going back to my drink." I said after a few songs and my feet were starting to hurt. She didn't say anything so I assumed that meant it was okay for me to leave her and Rose. I turned around only to see Edward talking to some blonde and I swear to god I thought my heart broke in half. It was such and odd feeling for me. I knew it was jealousy, but I had never had it that strong before in my life – especially for someone I had only known for a short period of a time. I stopped in my tracks and was going to turn around when Rose and Alice appeared next to me. _

"_We're going to back with you. We need something to drink." Rose told me. I let them walk ahead of me, since I was still a little depressed about seeing Edward with that girl who, I might add, was a lot prettier than I was. _

_We were about halfway back when I stumbled in my shoe and fell to the ground. I swear I heard something crack. I tried to fight off the tears I felt coming from the throbbing pain in my ankle and call for Alice or Rose to come back for me at the same time, but I failed at both. Great. Now I'm stuck in the middle of the dance floor, tears in my eyes, while strange guys huddle around me asking me if I'm okay._

_Help!_

"_Bella!" a voice called. An instant relief washed over me as I recognized who it was. _

"_Edward?" I asked, looking around for my savior. A second later, Edward had pushed himself through the crowd and was kneeling next to me. I was glad that he was there and I wondered if he had left the blonde to come get me, though I figured it wasn't likely._

"_Are you alright?" He asked, sounding genuinely concerned. _

"_No," I all but wailed. I hated the fact that I was crying in front of him, but I couldn't really help it. I was in a lot of pain. "I think it's broken." I admitted, biting my lip. _

"_Let me see." He said before ever so gently slipping off the stupid shoe I was wearing. While I waited for his verdict on my ankle, I peaked around to glance at the expression on his face. It was full of concern and seriousness, I wished that I could read his mind. Just for a moment. __"Hmm, it might very well be broken. You'll need to get some ice on that as soon as possible. Come one, I'll take you home…can you walk?"_

_I bit my lip again, wondering if walking were a possibility. I also wondered what he would do if I couldn't walk – which I was sure I couldn't do anyway. "I – I don't think so…" _

"_Alright." He said, handing me my shoe and standing up. I thought he was going to leave me, but – instead – he picked me up as if I weighed less than a pillow. "I've got you." _Boy, do you ever. _I though as I wrapped my arms around his neck. My heart was beating so fast I was sure he could hear it. _

"_Bella!" Alice's voice rang out. I turned to look for her, smiling a little when I saw her bursting through the crowed, Jasper at her side. __"I'm _so_ sorry, I really thought you were behind us."_

"_Alice, it's no biggie. I'm fine." I attempted to assure her. I didn't want her to feel guilty or anything about something caused by my own clumsiness._

"_She messed up her ankle." Edward said. "I'm going to take her home." My heart fluttered in my chest when he said that. I waved to Alice over Edward's shoulder when we were near the door and, as Edward walked toward the car, I tried to figure out where these feelings for him were coming from. Though, I did know that I had to get over them, and soon, or my life would be a living hell._

_"Once we get home, you can come back and party some more," I started once Edward had revved the Volvo to life. "I'll be fine by myself."_

_"I'm not going back." He said, "I'm going to stay home and take care of you." I couldn't help myself from blushing. Even though I didn't like when people worried about me, it made me feel good to know that Edward would be there._

_"Really, you can go back to that blonde you were talking to. She was pretty…" I trailed off, looking out the window. I waited for him to agree about the girls prettiness, but I wasn't prepared for what he actually said. _

_"Eh, she had an annoying voice. I would kill myself if I had to listen to it everyday." I kept a straight face even though, on the inside, I was jumping for joy. "Besides," He continued. "I prefer brunettes." _I'm a brunette! _A voice in my head exclaimed as my heart soar. _

I'm sure he doesn't mean all brunettes._ Another voice argued. _

_Before I knew it, we were back at the apartment complex and Edward was lifting me out of my seat. Not that I minded being in his arms, but being carried made me feel…helpless. _

"_This is ridiculous." I exclaimed as Edward stepped into the elevator. I tried not to show how safe and comfortable I also felt by him carrying me. _

"_Would you just calm down and let me help you?" He asked, sounding amused. _

"_Fine." I huffed, though a part of me felt like flying at that moment. _

_It was that night that I realized my feelings for Edward were much _much_ stronger than they should have been._

**End Flashback**

"My feet hurt," I moaned, desperately trying to keep up with Alice and Rose's fast walking pace. We had been shopping for two hours already and Alice bought my enough clothes – that I wouldn't wear without her making me – for the next two months…at least! I was so thankful that the guys were meeting us in half an hour. Though, if I were being completely honest with myself, I knew it was partly because that meant I could see Edward again.

I was sure Alice rolled her eyes but she stopped and turned to face me. "We're done anyway. The guys will be here soon and I have to use the ladies room." I went with her while Rose stood outside, waiting for the guys and watching our purchases.

I stood with Alice, watching her check her appearance in the mirror, when we heard yelling and screaming coming from outside the bathroom. We rushed out just in time to see Rose pick a blonde girl a few inches off the ground, by her hair, and toss her. I was sure that it was in self-defense. The girl, however, latched onto Rose and pulled her to the ground with her. "Rose!" Alice and I called as Rose landed on top of the blonde. They were pulling each other's hair and punching each other wherever they could. Alice and I quickly made our way to them and tried to pull them apart just as we heard Emmett's yell for his wife from a distance behind yes.

We eventually broke up the fight, Alice doing her best to hold onto Rose from behind while I – with my back facing the girl Rose had just kicked the crap out of – stood in between them so Rose wouldn't go after her again. Over Rose's shoulder I saw the guys rushing towards us, closer than they were before. I was about to ask Rose what had happened when I felt someone grab my hair and pull me to the ground.

"What the fuck!" I exclaimed, squirming around so that I could attempt to punch the girl who had attacked me enough so she would let me go.

"Bella, stop." I heard Edward say. It sounded like he was right behind me at that point. The girl and I were still fighting, and I wondered if it looked like how Rose and her were fighting. I felt hands wrap around my waist and pull me away from her. My vision was blurry for a while and then – when it finally cleared – I saw the other girl, who was beaten up pretty badly, being held back b the security guard.

The security guard yelled something along the lines of, "Get out," but I couldn't be sure because I was too busy trying to calm myself down. Edward, his arm still around my waist, led us out of the mall and toward our cars.

"Holy shit, Bella!" Emmett exclaimed, sounding more amused than concerned, "You really went to town on that girl, are you okay?"

"Fine." I muttered and then rubbed my shoulder. Edward still had his arm around my waist…not that I really minded that.

"Are you sure?" Edward asked. At least he looked worried about me. I looked over at him and nodded as Jasper spoke.

"What was that fight all about anyway, Rose?"

"Whats-her-face walked by me talking shit about Bella and Alice while she was on the phone with someone." She cleared her throat and then mimicked what the girl had said. _"'You should see these three girls walking around. There's a blonde, who's really pretty. I bet she's a supermodel or something – and stuck up. But she's hanging out with these two other girls. One of them is really short, I'm telling you, she's a freak. She just looks weird. And there's another girl, a brunette, who's not even pretty. But it looks like she's trying to be prettier than she actually is and it's just a train wreck.' _So I attacked her."

Though I had known Rose for many months, I never expected her to get in an all out brawl just because someone said something mean about me. Well, and Alice too.

"Rose," Alice began, "You shouldn't have done that. You could have gotten arrested or something."

Rose shrugged. "She won't press any charges if she knows what's good for her." She muttered.

I reached up to touch the side of my mouth, which I didn't notice had been bleeding until just now. I don't know If anyone else noticed before either, but Edward seemed to now because – since we were standing outside the Volvo – he reached into the back seat and grabbed a few tissues and gently pressed them to the bleeding spot.

"I think we'll pass on lunch," He said, "I think we should head home and get you cleaned up." He was standing so close to me and, oh my god, did he smell amazing. We said goodbye to everyone and then climbed into our cars.

"Alright, let's see," He began as I sat down in the kitchen chair. He knelt down in front of me and I pulled the tissue away from my lip that I had held there for the entire drive home. "It looks like it'll heal fine. You might have a small scar right," he brought his finger to my lip and carefully traced a section of the corner of my bottom lip. "here." He finished with a whisper, removing his hand. I stared into his beautiful green eyes and I just could not help myself.

Closing the space between us, I gently pressed my lips to his.

He seemed just as shocked as I was because he didn't respond for a moment or so and I was afraid that I had crossed a line, but then he cupped my face with his hand and responded with enthusiasm. Reluctantly, I pulled away when I needed to breathe and sat there for a moment, eyes closed. I opened my eyes and met his green eyes again. He smiled a little. "Edward," I whispered, ready to tell him why I had done what I just did, but was cut off by the ringing of his cell phone. He stood up quickly and grabbed it, answering it with the small smile still on his face.

"Carlisle?" He asked. He didn't talk for a moment, and then his expression changed from whatever he was feeling after our kiss – which I couldn't tell what it was – to pain. I sat impatiently while I waited for him to finish the phone call. "Bella and I will be right there." He said and then closed his phone. He stood there, silent, for a moment or so, clenching his fist tightly before he looked over at him, the pained expression still evident on his face. What in the world could Carlisle could have told him to get him so upset?

"We need to get to the hospital…now."

* * *

_Author's Note: Dun dun dun!! Who's in the hospital? Are they okay? Hmm…_

_But yay for Edward and Bella! However…they're not together yet. They still have a little ways to go._

_**Preview:**_

_"Look, why don't I head back to the apartment and grab a few things? A change of clothes, a book or two. I can get those papers that you didn't get a chance to finish grading too." Bella said, pulling my car keys around of her pocket. I blinked a few times, staring at her with wide eyes before I pulled her into a tight hug. _

_"You're amazing." I whispered. _

_~Jyssica~_


	9. Chapter Nine: Hospital Visit

_Author's Note: Sorry this took so long. It's nearing the end of school so I'm swamped with work. However, I have one week left and then I'm done, so I'll have a lot more time to write. Unfortunatly, my computer is broken. I mean, it works and all but it takes like twenty minutes and I have to click this button everytime I go to a new screen. So, I won't be using it as much. Yet, I still have a desktop computer so I can use that when I'm ready to update. _

_**Last Time:**_

_"Carlisle?" He asked. He didn't talk for a moment, and then his expression changed from whatever he was feeling after our kiss – which I couldn't tell what it was – to pain. I sat impatiently while I waited for him to finish the phone call. "Bella and I will be right there." He said and then closed his phone. He stood there, silent, for a moment or so, clenching his fist tightly before he looked over at him, the pained expression still evident on his face. What in the world could Carlisle could have told him to get him so upset?_

_"We need to get to the hospital…now."_

* * *

I let Bella drive to the hospital. Usually I didn't let anyone drive my car, but – given the situation – I didn't really care. And I knew that if I were to drive in the upset condition I was in, I risked getting into an accident and harming myself and, more importantly, Bella.

I love her and I know that now. But I'm too scared of rejection and of the awkwardness that would follow between me and my _roommate_ to say anything. And now…well my love life is going on the backburner.

Bella pulled into a parking spot and I leaped from the car, rushing towards the entrance of the ICU. Alice and Jasper were already there. Alice was crying as she stood up and bounded towards me. I wrapped my arms around my sister and let her cry into me chest – seeing as she was much shorter than I was. I looked to my left just in time to see Bella walking past us, taking a seat by Jasper. I was sure he would inform her what had happened, so I took Alice's hand and led her down the hall, where Carlisle was sitting standing in front of one of the rooms.

"She's going to be okay," was the first thing he said as he wrapped his arm around Alice's shoulder.

"What happened?" I asked, since I hadn't been told the full story yet.

"She was heading home from a clients house and she was hit by a drunk driver." He answered as anger rushed through my veins. I felt the urge to hunt down the dick who ran into Esme and kill him myself. "He was killed on impact." Nevermind… "Esme broke a few ribs and her right leg…but she's in a coma." We stood there in silence before Carlisle continued. "I'm staying here overnight. You're more than welcome to stay too…" Of course I was going to stay. Alice would too, and Jasper, of course, just to support Alice. But Bella… Bella had to get up early in the morning because she had an interview with someone she was doing an article about. Bella should spend the night in her own bed, not in an uncomfortable waiting room.

"I'm staying." Alice squeaked.

"Me too." I answered. "I'm going to tell Bella that she can go home, though."

Hands in my pockets, staring at the floor, I made my way back down the hallway. I stopped walking when I noticed Bella standing in front of me, but I didn't look her in the eye. "I just came out to let out know that I'm staying here overnight with Alice and Carlisle, but you can go home if you like. I'll call if anything –" She cut me off.

"Are you kidding?" She exclaimed incredulously, "I'm not going anywhere. I may have only known Esme for a few months, but I love her too. I'm staying right here." I looked up into her beautiful brown eyes in shock. Could she really care about my mother enough to stay in a hot, stuffy waiting room overnight? "Look, why don't I head back to the apartment and grab a few things? A change of clothes, a book or two. I can get those papers that you didn't get a chance to finish grading too." Bella said, pulling my car keys out of her pocket. I blinked a few times, staring at her with wide eyes before I pulled her into a tight hug.

"You're amazing." I whispered.

"Thank you." She kissed my cheek and then headed for the door calling, "I'll be back soon."

Alice returned to the waiting room just as Bella exited. "Is she really going to leave?" She asked, sounding a bit hurt – and I knew it all wasn't because of what happened. Of course she would want her best friend here to help her through the ordeal as well.

"Well, yes. But she's coming back." I answered, taking a seat across from Jasper. We lapsed into a silence for what seemed like ages. At one point I began to pace back and forth, and then Carlisle joined us, saying nothing as he sat down next to me. Almost an hour past and Bella returned, a duffle bag hanging from her shoulder. I sat back down and she sat next to me, rubbing comforting circles on my arm as I rested my head against the wall behind me and closed my eyes. Somehow, just her touch made me feel better.

Before I knew it, it was morning and I was waking up from an uncomfortable sleep. I went to move, but I found that my right side was being held down. I looked over and saw Bella, asleep, her head resting on my shoulder and she was holding onto my arm. Alice was already awake – smiling at us - and Carlisle and Jasper had disappeared. I was instantly glad that it was Sunday and that I didn't have to go to work. Then I remembered about Bella's meeting and I gently shook her awake. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked up at me, slightly confused.

"Don't you have that interview this morning?" I asked. She shook her head and then stretched her arms and yawned.

"Nope. I called the woman last night on the way home and told her what had happened. She was more than pleased to reschedule it for tomorrow. Mrs. Embers won't be too upset, I'm sure." She answered. I stared at her with wide eyes, shocked that she had rearranged her schedule just to stay here with me. I opened my mouth to say something by Jasper's voice cut me off.

"I have breakfast…and coffee." He said. He handed out the coffee as we passed around the bag of McDonalds, reaching in to grab one of their breakfast sandwiches. A few minutes later, Carlisle came back out and announced that Esme was getting her own room. Room 324. We made our way upstairs and into the room, sitting around Esme's bed. I was desperately hoping for her to wake up.

We were there for _hours_ and nothing happened. Most of it was in silence anyway. Eventually, sitting there staring at Esme's nearly lifeless body got to me and I had to leave the room. I felt my emotions that I had tried to cover up begin to bubble to the surface and I didn't want to lose it in front of everyone. "I need some air." I muttered before rushing out of the room and heading for the elevator.

Once safely outside, I ran my fingers through my hair and began pacing back and forth in front of the entrance, not caring who saw me. Within moments, I heard a sweet voice call my name.

"Edward?" Bella asked. I turned around to look at her, her face full of concern. "Are you okay?" I dropped my arms to the side and didn't say anything. I couldn't find my voice. "Oh, Edward," I heard Bella whisper. I tried to fight the tears I felt coming, but when Bella threw her arms around me and hugged me tightly, I couldn't hold them back anymore. Man, I feel like a wuss.

Bella rubbed circles on my back comfortingly saying things like, "Shh, Edward. Esme's going to be just fine. I'm here for you." Over and over again. It was nice to know that - at a time like this - she could be strong even if I couldn't. I was still in shock that something like this could happen Esme. Esme - the woman with a big heart, gave money to charities, helped those in need, and didn't judge anyone. And then a thought crossed my mind and I thought of the possibility of it happening to Bella. The thought made me hug her to myself tighter.

Finally, I was able to calm myself down and I pulled away from Bella. "Can we go now? I – I can't stay here anymore."

Bella nodded. "Of course." She handed me the keys to the Volvo. "I'll go up, tell everyone, and get our stuff. I'll meet you in the car." I watched her walk back into the hospital before I headed for the Volvo.

As soon as I got into the car, I put the key into the ignition and turned on the radio to get rid of the silence. There had been so much silence that I could barley take it anymore, that and I was hoping that maybe the loud music would stop me from thinking all the negative thoughts that I knew would run through my mind. I closed my eyes and rested my head on the back of the seat while I listened to the bass of whatever was playing on the radio pound through the speakers. I guessed that Emmett had messed with my radio stations...again. I wasn't sure how much time had passed, but soon, the car door slammed, letting me know that Bella had gotten into the car. I opened my eyes and glanced at her, but she was focusing on the road as she drove back to the apartment.

"Why don't you go rest, you look awfully tired." Bella suggested as we walked into the dark apartment.

"What about you? You must be exhausted too." We had been in the hospital for seven hours, and that was today only. She gave me a soft smile.

"I'm fine. I've got laundry to do, I have to call Mrs. Embers, and work on an article. Dinner will be ready by the time you wake up, promise." I stood there, staring at her for a moment or so before she gave me a shove toward my bedroom.

* * *

_Author's Note: Like I said, I don't know how much I'll be able to update, but I'm going to try._

_**Preview: **_

_"What are you talking about? Esme thinks of you as a daughter, your practically Alice's sister, and I -" He trailed off and looked at the floor before walking to the door of the hospital room. "Will you please come in?" He whispered._

_****__~Jyssica Marie_


	10. Chapter Ten: Advice and Big News

_Author's Note: I know it's been a while. My computer was broken and I was swamped with school work, but my computer is fixed (thanks to my wonderful mother) and I've finally finished high school! And so, to celebrate, I've decided to update. And expect for chapters more often because I have the whole summer off and I only work a few days a week so I'll have more time to write. Woohoo! _

_**Disclaimer: **Me own none of this. I know...it's depressing._

_**Last Time:**_

_"What about you? You must be exhausted too." We had been in the hospital for seven hours, and that was today only. She gave me a soft smile._

_"I'm fine. I've got laundry to do, I have to call Mrs. Embers, and work on an article. Dinner will be ready by the time you wake up, promise." I stood there, staring at her for a moment or so before she gave me a shove toward my bedroom._

* * *

Esme has been in a coma for nearly three months now and it's been super hard on Edward. I can see the change in him, he was so lively before. But now...now he's quiet and keeps to himself. It's sad. I want to help him feel better, but I don't know how. Even Alice is different. She doesn't dress me up anymore. No more clubbing, or shopping trips. Normally, I would be jumping for joy about that, but she's my best friend and she's hurting. I would gladly go on an all day shopping trip with her if it meant that she would be happy again. Of course, she seems happy to others who don't know her. She smiles and is friendly, but her eyes don't light up like they used to. I can see the difference. At least she has Jasper to help her through it. I always liked Jasper. I know Alice can be a hard person to get along with - especially if you don't like bubbly, energetic people - but Jasper is really patient with her. I'm glad she has him.

"How is Edward handling things?" Rose asked. We were sitting in Starbucks on a rainy Saturday afternoon. I had been in the hospital with Edward for hours and I needed to leave. I didn't want to leave him there alone, but it was hard to stay there for so long. That and I needed some advice. Since Alice had no intentions of leaving the hospital, I called up Rose and had her meet me here, near the hospital so that I could be there within minutes...just in case. Rose and Emmett didn't know Esme well, but they, of course, felt bad and were sensitive about the subject around Edward and Alice. They were amazing friends. Of course, Emmett had been my best friend in high school, so naturally he was now as well. Rose and I had grown a lot closer these past few months and I now considered her one of my best friends as well.

I sighed at the question and chewed on my bottom lip. "Terribly," I answered finally. I leaned closer to her and started to fidget with the napkin in front of me. "He's so distant and quiet. He gives one word answers and usually only talks when spoken to. He's barley eating and I don't think he sleeps a lot either. He stays home a lot from work and hasn't been giving the students as much work because he doesn't feel like grading. It's hard to watch," I took a deep breath, feeling as though I might cry, "I don't know what to do. I try to comfort him, but nothing seems to work. He won't talk to me about his feelings. I feel that if I could read his mind and if I knew what he was thinking then I could help him, but the fact is that I can't, so I'm stuck helpless. Seeing him this way breaks my heart, but nothing I do appears to help him at all." I paused and took another deep breath before meeting Rose's blue eyes, watching me sadly, "What do I do Rose? How do I help him?"

"Be there for him." She answered as if it here the simplist thing in the world. I was going to say something, but she continued. "He's going through something traumatic and there's not much you can do. He needs to deal with this on his own, in his own way." She stopped to take a sip of her coffee, but I kept my mouth shut and waited because I knew she wasn't done talking. "But he needs to know your there for him. Actions speak louder than words, so do something for him to let him know that you're not going anywhere. Remind him that he can talk to you if he needs to." I glanced at my watch and decided that I should get back to the hospital.

"I should get back." I said, standing up and throwing my coat on. Rose stood up as well. I smiled at her before thowing my arms around her, hugging her tightly. "Thank you so much for listening to me, Rose."

"It's no problem, Bella. You know I'm always here for you." She returned the hug and then walked with me to the parking lot with a smile. "Tell everyone I said hi." She said as I climbed into my truck and headed back to the hospital.

It was now nearly eleven at night and I was in my pajama's, ready to go to bed. Edward had been quiet all night - as usual - so I decided to check on him one last time before retreating to my room for the night. "Edward?" I called, rapping on his door. When he didn't answer, I opened the door a crack and peaked inside. When I saw him out on his balcony, I opened the door more and stepped inside.

He was only in flannel pajama bottoms, gripping the railing of the fire escape and looking down. I thought about what Rose had said as I watched him before I walked forward and out onto the balcony, wrapping my arms around his toned waist. He didn't say anything, but he placed a hand on mine. I wasn't sure how long we had been standing there, but eventually he whispered, "Thank you."

I knew that we both had to get to bed, so I unwrapped my arms and then grabbed his hand. "You should get to bed." I tugged him toward his bed and watched as he climbed with a bed. WIth a smile, I bid him goodnight and headed for the door.

"Bella." He called as I stepped out the door. I turned around and faced him, waiting for him to continue. "Would you mind - um - laying with me for a while?" I stepped back into the room and closed the door behind me before I made my way back to his bed and laid down, covering up with his comforter. "Bella." Edward said after laying there in silence for a long while. I had already gotten comfortable and had my eyes closed, figuring that I was probably going to fall asleep there. Oh well, it wouldn't be the first time.

"Yeah?"

"I don't think I've thanked you enough for being there for me during this whole ordeal. I know I haven't been easy or fun to live with, but you've been nothing but wonderful to me...so thank you. You have no idea how much it means to me."

"You're welcome, Edward." There was another silence and I was almost asleep when I heard,

"Bella?"

"Mhmm." I mumbled into his pillow, which smelled amazing I might add, just like him.

"She'll be okay...right?" I knew immediatly what he was talking about. I rolled over and sat up a little to look at him.

"Edward, I truly belive that she's going to be just fine. Esme is a fighter. If she's fought this long to stay with us, them I'm sure she fight even harder to come back to us." He nodded and took a deep breath before closing his eyes. I sat and watched him for a long while and, eventually, he fell asleep. I sighed and laid down, closing my eyes and drifting off to sleep as well.

"Bella?" The velvet voice broke through my dream - in which Edward had just professed his undying love for me I might add. "Bella." the voice said again, but this time louder and seemed to be laced with sleep.

"Mmmm." I managed to mumble, letting the person know I could hear them.

"Your phone's going off." I finally recognized the voice as Edward's. It wasn't until then that I heard the loud ringtone that I realized to be Alice's. I opened one eye and saw that it was 2AM.

My brain immediatly thought the worst.

I leaped from the bed and made my way across the room to Edward's dresser, where I had placed my phone the night before. "Hello?" I answered, looking over at Edward, who was watching me curiously.

"Bella! Where's Edward? Is he with you? His phone is off." She was fully awake.

"Yeah, he's here."

"You need to get to the hospital...now."

No. No. No. No.

"What's -"

"Esme woke up."

If I thought Edward drove fast before, boy was I wrong. He was pushing 100 the whole way to the hospital, but he didn't run any red lights or miss any stop signs. Of course, it was 2AM so the roads were clear. I was holding on for dear life, but I was so happy that I wasn't even really paying attention. Edward whipped into the first parking spot and leaped out of the car, hardly taking the time to take the keys out of the ignition. I followed closly behind him, excited to see Esme's smiling face and bright eyes again. But then I remembered something...

I'm not family.

I shouldn't go into the room, at least not until the family has had their time to talk to her. I'll wait outside and then, once everyone is done, I'll pop in and say hi, tell Esme I'm happy she's okay, and then head back home with Edward.

Yes, that sounds like a better plan.

"Aren't you coming in?" Edward asked after I had sat down in one of the chairs outside the door of the room.

I shook my head. "I'm not family so I'll stay outside."

"What are you talking about? Esme thinks of you as a daughter, your practically Alice's sister, and I -" He trailed off and looked at the floor before walking to the door of the hospital room. "Will you please come in?" He whispered. As I thought about what he was going to stay, I stood up and followed Edward into the room.

When I saw Edward's geen eyes light up at the sight of Esme - who was sitting up slightly and giving Alice a small smile - I felt my heart sore and i couldn't stop the smile that grew on my face. Esme's head snapped up and she gave Edward a smile before lifting her arms up just lightly. Edward rushed to give his mother a hug while I saat down in a chair across the room. Once their embrace ended, I notice Esme look over at me and slowly raised an eyebrow.

"Bella, what are you doing all the way over there?" She asked. Though her voice was weak, it was still a comfort to hear her voice. "Come here." She lifted her arms up to me. I gave a small smile and made my way over to her, giving her a loose hug.

"It's good to have you back, Esme."

* * *

_Author's Note: Yay! Esme's okay! I didn't want her to be in a coma for too long. I know it seemed fast, but Esme can't be gone for too long! _

_**Preview:**_

_There was a loud boom of thunder that I didn't pay much attention to...then I realized that Bella was home along and was undoubtfully freaking out right now. _

_"Edward, where are you going?" Alice asked as I headed for the door. _


	11. Chapter Eleven: Welcome Home

_Author's Note: Sorry it's been so long! I've been working and doing college stuff but today is my 18th birthday and so I decided to update after my party. =) I'm not sure how well I like this chapter, I had a bit of a writers block. But I got through it and I hope you like it. _

**_Disclaimer: _**_I asked my mom if you would buy me the twilight series for my birthday...but instead I got an IPod touch. =( (I also asked for Kellan Lutz but that didn't happen either.)_

**_Last Time:_**

_"Bella, what are you doing all the way over there?" She asked. Though her voice was weak, it was still a comfort to hear her voice. "Come here." She lifted her arms up to me. I gave a small smile and made my way over to her, giving her a loose hug._

_"It's good to have you back, Esme."_

* * *

"That bitch better not even think about touching my husband or I will fuck her up." I heard Rosalie hiss the moment I stepped into the apartment.

"Well," Bella seemed amused, "I see the pregnancy hormones are kicking in."

Rosalie had been pregnant for about four months but decided not to announce it until Esme was better and, now that she was coming home today, Rosalie didn't mind showing off her baby bump.

By the way, if you didn't catch that, I said Esme was coming home today.

And Alice, my oh so dear sister, had planned a welcome home party for her, which surprised no one. So now Rosalie was waiting in our apartment for Emmett to get out of work and then they were going to follow Bella and I down to my parents house, since they had no idea where it was. I was glad that Bella was coming with me. She had been so wonderful during the entire ordeal, and I know I haven't been the easiest person to live with. I haven't had a chance to properly thank her yet, but I was hoping Alice could help me with that.

"Hey, Babe." Emmett greeted as he and I walked into the living room where Rosalie and Bella were sitting. "How are you and Emmy Jr. doing?"

Rosalie sent him a glare. "Emmett, we're not naming our baby after you."

Emmett pouted. "Why not." He whined like a little kid being denied ice cream.

"Because, one Emmett McCarthy in the world is enough."

"That's for sure." Bella and I agreed at the same time.

Emmett crossed his arms and pouted as he sat down next to Rosalie, then he put an arm around her.

"What time are we supposed to be at the party?"

"Alice wants us there at six. So we'll have to leave in about an hour."

Bella stood up and headed for the hallway, announcing that she was going to start getting ready, and I watched her as she went.

It has begun to come to my attention that my feelings for Bella were a lot stronger than friendship. And it scared the hell out of me. Mainly because I was sure they were not mutual feelings. Besides, what would happen if things went bad? She was still my sister's best friend, she wouldn't just disappear out of my life.

"Dude, just make-out with her already."

My head snapped over to look at him and I blinked a few times. "What?"

"Besides the fact that we all know your in love with her. You just proved it by staring down the hallway even after she had disappeared from view."

"I was thinking." I retorted. "You should try it sometime."

"Hey! I think all the time."

I rolled my eyes and sat down, "Emmett, thinking about sex is not exactly what I was talking about."

He didn't have anything to say after that, probably because all he did think about was sex. I was so glad I couldn't read his mind. I couldn't imagine the gross images I'd have to see if I could. I involuntarily shuddered at the thought.

About an hour later we were just about ready to go just as Bella got a phone call.

"Mrs. Embers?" She answered. I was worried why her boss was calling her so late at night on a Saturday. "Yeah, it's just about done...No, but it'll be done for - wait, you said the decline was tomorrow night...No, it's fine. I'll finish it by nine." She sighed and hung up the phone. "I can't go."

"What? Why?" I didn't want to go by myself, but I also didn't want to leave Bella home alone.

"Mrs. Embers changed the deadline for this article for a few hours from now and I know I won't be able to go to the party and finish it at the same time." She frowned. "Go. Have fun. Tell Esme welcome home for me." She said, basically pushing us out the door.

There weren't that many people at Esme's welcome home party, just several family members and her close friends, which I thought was good. Esme had been in a coma for three months, she didn't need a huge, loud party. We parked down the road a bit and out of view so we could surprise Esme, which we did. When she walked in the door we all jumped out and surprised her. The look on her face was priceless. She clutched onto Carlisle's arm, gasped, and then looked as though she was going to cry. She hugged Carlisle first, then Alice and I, then went around to greet her guests. I'd been there for about an hour when Esme took me by the arm and pulled me outside.

"Esme?" I thought she was mad at me.

"Why have you not told Bella how you felt yet?" Good ol' Esme. Straight to the point. Wait...she's been in a coma for three months, she couldn't know anything already.

"What? How did you - " Then it hit me. "Alice." I growled.

"Alice tells me that you really care for her. Now answer my question. Why have you not told her yet?"

I sighed, leaned against the railing, and ran my fingers through my hair. "It's...complicated."

"I don't see anything complicated with it. You have feelings with her and she has feelings for you - don't argue with me because I can tell she does. So just tell her."

"Esme, I don't want to ruin our friendship..." She gave me a look, "Okay, if I find the right moment...then I'll tell her."

She gave me a smile. "Thank you. You know your father and I just want you to be happy."

I sighed again, "I know, Esme." And smiled at her. She gave me a tight hug and then Alice opened up the door and yelled at me for monopolizing Esme and that she had much more people to mingle with. Though I wanted to say that it was Esme who pulled me out here, I said nothing and followed them back into the house.

For me, the party was relatively boring. Creating small talk with people I barley knew or even liked, I knew it would have been much better with Bella there. But it wasn't like she had a choice, her career was important and she had work to do. At least Jasper wasn't much of a mingler either, I spent most of the night with him. He told me about how he was planning on proposing to Alice soon. I was happy for him. I knew that he and Alice really loved each other and that they belonged together. I just hope he did it soon. Alice had this way of being able to find things out before they happen without someone telling her...which was why I respected his wishes to not tell Bella. Besides the fact that Bella was Alice's best friend, she was a terrible liar and Jasper was right to fear that her facial expressions might give it away.

"Alice," I said once it appeared that she took a break from mingling. She always was a social butterfly. She looked over at me and grinned.

"You want me to help you tell Bella how you feel."

See what I mean?

"Err - Yeah."

"Well, my dear brother, your lucky that you have me because I know exactly what you need to do." She beamed and then pulled me into the kitchen before telling me her 'master' plan. Man, she really has thought this through. I wonder how long she has been planning this...

There was a loud boom of thunder that I didn't pay much attention to...then I realized that Bella was home along and was undoubtfully freaking out right now.

"Edward, where are you going?" Alice asked as I headed for the door.

"Bella's home alone." I stated. She nodded, understanding, and waved goodbye.

Just as I had suspected, the second I walked into the apartment I heard loud sobs coming from the living room. I rushed in and there Bella was, sitting in the middle of the floor, shaking as she pulled her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, crying into her knees. I knelt down by her side and wrapped my arms tightly around her. It pained me to see her like this. She turned in my arms and cried into my chest.

"Shh, it's okay. I'm here." I soothed, rubbing circles on her back, hoping it would calm her down. Apparently it helped because a few minutes later she had relaxed. I loosened my grip around her so she could back away if she wanted, which she did as she wiped her eyes.

"Sorry you had to see that..." She whispered. I put my hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, don't be sorry. The reason I'm home is because I heard the thunder and knew you would freak out. I expected that."

She gave a weak laugh. "Your too nice for your own good. You know that?"

I chuckled softly and then looked over at her, making sure she was okay. "Are you okay now?"

She nodded and smiled. "I am. Thank you. I feel bad for making you leave Esme's party though..."

Of course, sweet selfless Bella would say that. Always thinking of others first, part of the reasons why I loved her.

Yes, that's right, I said it. And I'll say it again. I love Bella Swan!

Now to just tell her...

"Bella, there's no reason to feel bad. Once Alice explains to her why I had to leave, she'll completely understand."

Bella sighed and leaned her back against the coffee table, we hadn't actually gotten off the floor yet. I thought about what Alice had told me, and her plan, and decided to do things my own way. Right now.

"Bella..." I began. She turned to look at me and it was only then that I realized how close she was.

"Yes, Edward?" She whispered, moving so that she was completely facing me.

Okay, Edward, now you've got her attention. All you have to do is say the words. It's only three little words, you can do it. Maybe I should have thought this through better. Maybe I should have taken Alice's advice. Besides, Alice is her best friend after all. No, I've got to do this my way. I just have to take a deep breath and say,

"I love you."

She was silent and I quickly looked away from her. I was afraid she was going to hit me or something.

"I'm sorry, I think I just hallucinated. What did you say?"

I took a deep breath and said it again. "Bella, I love you."

"I thought that's what you said."

It seemed like she wasn't going to say anything else, so, keeping my gaze from hers, I said, "Look, I understand if you - " I didn't get to finish my statement because Bella's lips were on mine and her hands tangled themselves in my hair.

That wasn't quite the reaction I had expected but, hey, I'll gladly take it.

I responded eagerly and pulled her onto my lap, my hands started to play with her hair. "I love you, too." She mumbled against my lips. I pulled away from her and stared wide eyed into her chocolate brown eyes.

"Really?" She nodded and gave me a wide smile. "Well, Alice will be happy to hear that." She laughed and then pressed her lips to mine once more.

* * *

_Author's Note: Like I said, I don't really like this chapter, the ending especially. But I hope you guys do!_

**_Preview:_**

_"Hey! Eddie, Bella, we're - " Emmett stopped and stared at us for a moment or so, probably because we were a complete mess. "Um...am I interrupting something?" He asked, covering his eyes with his hands. _


	12. Chapter Twelve: Alice's Birthday

_Author's Note: **Cowers behind chair** I'm sooooo sorry it's been like a year since I updated. I could go on and on with excuses, I had back surgery, I need to get a new laptop charger cord in order to use my laptop, which is the only computer I can actually update on at my house (I'm using my Aunt's), and my dad, who I was really close to, just recently passed away. But, the truth is, I lost my inspiration for this story for a while, which is why I'm apologizing for the crappiness of this chapter, I wrote it quickly while at my Aunt's so I could get something up before I have to leave. I partly found it, but until I get all the way inspired again, which I know I will, it'll take some time though, I won't be doing much updating. I promise not to let it go so long next time though. Pleaseeee don't hate me. =)_

_**Disclaimer: **__Yeah…still own nothing. _

_**Last Time:**_

_I responded eagerly and pulled her onto my lap, my hands started to play with her hair. "I love you, too." She mumbled against my lips. I pulled away from her and stared wide eyed into her chocolate brown eyes._

_"Really?" She nodded and gave me a wide smile. "Well, Alice will be happy to hear that." She laughed and then pressed her lips to mine once more._

* * *

You can't imagine how happy both Alice and Esme were to hear that Edward and I were together. Alice looked like a little kid on Christmas morning and Esme looked like she might cry. That was about a week ago, and my relationship with Edward was absolutely wonderful. He's absolutely amazing and I really do love him. I seriously can see myself being with him for the rest of my life. Still, these feelings scared me; I've never felt this strongly for a person before.

"Bella!" Edward's velvet voice rang from down the hallway. "Have you seen Alice's present?" Today's Alice's birthday and Edward and I were getting ready to head over to the apartment that she shared with Jasper for her party. I was standing in the kitchen, a bowl in my hand full of cake batter that I was currently stirring. I didn't think I was much of a baker, but Alice requested - well, demanded really - that I bake her a cake and it was her birthday, so who was I to say no? "I need to wrap it," Edward said as he entered the kitchen, looking around. I spun around and looked around, trying to find the box of shoes we had gotten for her.

"It's over, there." I used my spoon full of batter to point to the table behind him without even thinking about it and regretted it the moment I did. Not because it had dripped on the kitchen floor, but because Edward was standing close enough that the batter flew off the spoon and landed on his face. And I tried, but I couldn't help myself from laughing as I said, "Oh! I'm sorry."

He closed his eyes and wiped the batter away from his eyes. "You think it's funny?"

"Well...yeah." I only laughed harder, putting down the bowl and spoon. I turned to the paper towel holder and ripped off a piece of it and then I spun around again to hand it to him, only to get a cloud full of flour blown in my face. "Edward!" I could hear him laughing even though I couldn't see.

"What? I'm dirty and now so are you." Oh, really? Well two can play at that game, Mr. Cullen. Once I could see again, I reached behind me and grabbed an egg from the container and smirked at him. "Bella? What are you going to do with that?" He backed up a few steps until his back was pressed up against the refrigerator. Ha! Now he has nowhere to run. I gave him a smirk before reaching up and cracking the egg over his head, letting the yolk and all drip from the cracked shell into his hair. Tossing the broken egg shells aside, I moved away from him, expecting him to get some kind of revenge on me. Instead, he grabbed my hand and turned me around to face him. My back was against the counter and Edward placed his hands on the counter's edge on either side of my waist, pushing himself against me. He didn't say anything and I was confused and anxious as to what he was going to do. That is, until he leaned in and pressed his lips against my neck. The thing I was able to do was gasp at first and then it was hard to breathe.

The sound of the front door opening caused Edward to pull away from me, but, other than that, we didn't move.

"Hey! Eddie, Bella, we're -" Emmett stopped and started at us for a moment or so, probably because we both a mess. "Um...am I interrupting something?" He asked, covering his eyes with his hands. Rose walked in half a second later, looked at Edward and me, and then covered her mouth in a failed attempt to quiet her laughter.

"No, Emmett." Edward said as I tried to slow down my pounding heartbeat. "I was just about to take a shower." And, with that, he disappeared down the hallway.

"Bella," Rose began. She was still laughing. Normally I would have glared at her, but I still have having trouble breathing. "Are you alright? You look a bit flustered."

Emmett guffawed.

I wanted to tell her to fuck off but all I managed to say was, "I'm fine." In hopes they would drop the subject; I said nothing more and turned to pour the cake batter into the pan so I could put it in the oven. "What are you guys doing here so early?" I asked once I had finally regained my usual voice. "We're not leaving for a couple of hours."

Emmett grinned. "Rosie here was anxious to come see you, and you know how those pregnancy hormones make her act." Rose was only just beginning to show. Unless you already knew she was pregnant, you wouldn't have been able to guess just by looking at her.

Rose sent her husband a glare as he made his way into the living room. Then she looked at me. "He wanted to play COD."

"What happened to his game?"

"He got really mad at something that happened in the game yesterday. Smashed the whole damn game system to bits."

"No! But I thought he loved that thing?" Emmett may be a twenty three year old man, but he will always be a thirteen year old at heart.

"I know. But he just got so angry. I come home from the store and he's standing in the middle of the living room, looking like someone just killed his best friend, with his Xbox in pieces around him."

"Oh, poor Emmett." There was absolutely no point in trying to cover up my laughter because Rose was laughing harder than I was.

"He knows I'll buy him another one for his birthday. Which is why he wanted to come over and use Edward's."

There were a few moments of silence before I changed the subject. "When do you find out the sex of the baby?"

"Not for another two months or so." She looked down and rested a hand on her growing abdomen.

"What do you want?" The question came out weird. It sounded like I was talking about food or something rather than a baby.

"As long as it's healthy, I don't care."

"And Emmett?"

"He says he doesn't care either, but I think he secretly wants a boy."

"Someone he can play COD with constantly."

Rose threw her head back and laughed. "Exactly."

Edward emerged from the bathroom half a second later, wearing a plain white tee and jeans. His bronze hair was an entire shade darker due to the fact that he had just gotten out of the shower. "Where's Emmett?"

Before either Rose or I could answer, Emmett's booming voice filled the apartment. "What the hell? He didn't even shoot me! I shot him!"

The three of us looked in the direction of the living room in silence, I was waiting to hear the smash of something breaking but it never came. Then Rose spoke. "And that man is going to be a father in a few months..."

Edward and I laughed. "You better get in there before he breaks your Xbox too." Edward's eyes grew three times bigger before he hurried out of the room.

"Men." Rose and I said at the same time, rolling our eyes.

I opened my mouth to say something to Rose but instead Edward's voice drifted into the room. "Emmett!" He yelled.

"Uh-oh. Can you go play referee while I go change?" I asked Rose, looking down at the old, torn sweat pants I was wearing. Alice would be very upset if I wore them to her party. With another laugh, Rose nodded and got up from her seat.

I decided that since it was Alice's birthday, I would not wear the simple blouse and jeans I would normally wear. Instead I picked out a navy blue casual dress that Alice had picked out for me, of course, and black flats - I don't care what Alice says, heels are _not _my friend. I left my long hair down, tugging a brush through its waves, and then turning to look in the full length mirror attached to the closet door. I smiled at my reflection. Yes, Alice would be pleased.

_Ding! _The noise of the oven timer echoed down the hall. As I put in my pearl earrings, I rushed out of my bedroom so I could take it out of the oven and let it cool before I could decorate it.

"Are you done yet?" Emmett moaned from his spot at the kitchen table about an hour and a half later.

"Emmett," I hissed, sending him a quick glare and fighting the urge to throw something at him before I turned back to the cake. I finished writing Alice's name with pink frosting on the cake and then beamed. "Done!"

"_Finally!_" And then Emmett was instantly out the door, Rose following quickly behind him.

"You look beautiful," Edward whispered in my ear as we walked a distance away from Emmett and Rose towards his Volvo. As always, I blushed and muttered a thank you.

"You better drive nice and slow," I warned Edward once we were in the car, the cake safely on my lap. "If anything happens to this damn cake, you will be facing Alice's wrath."

Edward laughed but said nothing.

He had always been a dangerous driver. There's never been an accident, but he has had to slam on the breaks in several occasions. That day, however, he actually did the speed limit. Of course, he was bitching and moaning the entire way about driving so slow, but I knew he really didn't mind. First of all, I knew he would feel bad since Alice really did want this stupid cake. And second, I knew he didn't want to deal with an angry Alice, especially on her birthday.

Fifteen minutes later, we were walking down the hallway to Alice's 14C apartment. Edward had opened the door and we took one step into the kitchen, each one of us freezing instantly when we heard a small "Oh my god," coming from the living room. It was Alice, of course. Then there was silence and I thought it might be safe to continue but then Jasper spoke.

"Alice?" His voice was also quiet.

"Yes! Yes yes yes!" Alice squealed.

"Should we come back later?" Emmett whispered from behind me. Before any of us could respond to him, Alice came bursting into the room with a tear streaked face but wearing the biggest grin. She was waving her left hand around and nearly knocked the cake out of my hands, so I decided it was best to put it down at a nearby table. Alice would be upset if it got ruined.

"I'm getting married!" Alice sang, flashing the sparkling engagement ring in front of my face.

* * *

_Author's Note: I have been looking at this for about twenty minutes thinking, how can I make this better? And yet nothing seems to be coming to mind, so I guess this will have to do for now. I promise, the next chapter will be better, maybe even epic? I'm going to try my hardest anyway. _

_There is not preview this time, sorry. But I will tell you next time will involve the boys tuxedo shopping I think. _


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